SK Telecom recreates tourist spots including Seoul Tower through metaverse platform

By Kim Joo-heon Posted : May 8, 2023, 17:53 Updated : November 6, 2023, 16:24

[Courtesy of SK Telecom]

SEOUL -- SK Telecom, a top mobile carrier, has created virtual tourist spots where users can explore Seoul Tower, a famous tourist spot located near central Seoul, and Cheonggyecheon, a stream that flows through the heart of the capital city, through its metaverse platform "Ifland." Users can also look around trendy regions in South Korea such as Gangnam, a district in southern Seoul known as the capital city's heart of fashion and finance, and Hongdae, the western Seoul district of music and culture.
 
Ifland has been used to host many different lectures, business forums, and concerts in virtual reality. The platform incorporates volumetric capture technology that uses many cameras to capture an entire scene in 360 degrees. The special image-capturing technique is used to create three-dimensional (3D) environments for the production of high-end virtual reality and augmented reality content. As of the third quarter of 2022, the cumulative number of Ifland users surpassed 12.8 million.
 
SK Telecom (SKT) said in a statement on May 8 that five domestic tourist spots and Mount Hollywood in L.A. were created on Ifland. The company had worked with Art&Space IT, a domestic 3D solutions provider to produce the virtual clones of Gangnam Station and Mt Hollywood. Mt Hollywood is a 1,625 foot (495.3 meter)-tall peak where hikers can enjoy the views of L.A. 
 
"We will continue to add more tourist spots to provide more memories and joy to Ifland users," SKT's metaverse business head Yang Maeng-seok said in a statement. In November 2022, SKT launched the global version of Ifland which supports English, Chinese, and Japanese. The global version is available in 49 countries. 

In June 2022, a virtual music festival was held using volumetric technology at Ifland so that fans could enjoy surreal content such as performances showing artists. 
Kim Joo-heon

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