High start-up costs or obstacles with 360 video production has prevented businesses and consumers alike from easily entering into mass markets with this new technology. What is 360 video, exactly? It’s the latest form of video marketing that allows consumers to interact with your product/service on an entirely new level … many levels, in fact. Below is a great example of 360 video, from the World Surf League.

To develop 360 video content, there are a few items that a business or consumer must first acquire and/or overcome.

360 video production checklist:

• A camera rig that supports 360 degrees of video capture. This is usually accomplished with six GoPros configured in a certain layout. These rigs currently run for around $4,000 to $5,000.
• Stitching software to collect and integrate each video into a 360-degree view. Even with the right software, getting the seam lines to appear invisible require an experienced video production artist who understands the challenges of creating such content on a professional level.
• The ability to upload and disturb the finalized 360 video to an audience who may then view the content in desired form.

Each of these checklist points requires time and research, in order to perfect the process and produce professional-quality content. As such, the current barrier-to-entry for 360 video is huge, but the payoffs may be even bigger.