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High Definition aerial filming specialists, Skyworks, have partnered with Illumina Digital to create a new interactive video mapping application entitled SAVI*. This pioneering concept will see hundreds of geo-located short-form video clips of UK points of interest made available to view on any web enabled device.

SAVI will take the form of a web plug-in, website, and/or mobile application that will allow the user to explore the UK from the air, create and edit unique content using the huge library of Skyworks footage, and share this in the form of video cards and blogs via e-mail and social networking sites. The video material will be taken from over 200 hours of footage of specific points of interest in Skyworks’ aerial archive, the largest aerial HD archive in the world.

The development of this project is being undertaken with the help of the Technology Strategy Board who have seen the huge opportunities in this idea. Due to launch later in 2009, SAVI will be initially available for the UK. It is planned for the project to be rolled out to cover other countries around the globe.

SAVI will feature a unique user-generated content service where personal video captured on a mobile device can be automatically intercut with Skyworks footage of the surrounding area and uploaded in seconds.  Commercial sites, such as tourist boards and hotels will be able to embed the footage into their own sites, allowing users to see monuments and places of interest using real life footage.

Damian Keogh, Managing Director, Skyworks, comments: “We’ve partnered with Illumina Digital as they share our vision and have the technology to bring the SAVI concept to life. With a deceptively simple and engaging map-based interface, SAVI makes you a virtual explorer of every corner of the UK.  It will inspire you to explore for real, and to combine our content with your own material to create the perfect record.”

Andrew Chitty, Managing Director, Illumina, adds: “Skyworks are creating fantastic and inspiring content that creates a unique view of the world. By working with Skyworks on the SAVI system, we’re helping to liberate and enrich that content. We’re making it accessible to a wider audience by connecting it with mobiles and social networks, enhancing its meaning by offering it on a map-based interface and encouraging creativity and learning by enabling users to edit and mash-up.”