USA TODAY Super Bowl Coverage to Include Augmented Reality

MCLEAN, Va., Feb. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- USA TODAY's Super Bowl coverage will include two Augmented Reality experiences in which readers can use their smartphone to experience enhanced 3D features and audio. The Friday, February 4th edition of USA TODAY will include a 360 degree tour of Dallas Cowboys stadium, site of the Super Bowl. The tour will include an introduction by Jerry Jones, stadium and Cowboys owner, along with interior and exterior highlights. The Monday, February 7th edition will give readers a 3D view of the key play of the game in an animated sequence and an option to receive player stats. The Augmented Reality features are powered by junaio.

With the newspaper and your Android or iPhone smartphone, readers will make these one-of-a-kind experiences come alive. Augmented Reality blends real-life environments with computer animation allowing viewers to explore things in a new way. To view the features, a user only needs to download the free junaio app from the Apple App Store or the Android Marketplace and then point their smartphone at the image in the newspaper. junaio's image recognition and object tracking capabilities make it possible to recognize a print image and call up additional digital content for the viewer.

For detailed instructions and to watch a video of the experience visit http://biggame3d.usatoday.com.

junaio is the world's most advanced mobile Augmented Reality Browser and growing daily with interesting content relevant to a viewer's location or triggered through images and objects the camera is pointing at. The unmatched ease of use, great choice of content and superior features make junaio everybody's daily companion, an instant source of information about places, events, bargains or objects in the world around us. Features are: location based services using onboard GPS and compass, highly accurate positioning, even inside buildings or exhibition sites, object recognition and natural feature tracking useful for scaling and integrating graphic overlays or 3D models into the real world. Two-way interaction between the user and the displayed AR overlays for gaming and other virtual experiences. And of course the full range of multimedia displays, including text, image, sound, video. junaio was created by metaio GmbH, the worldwide leader in Augmented Reality.

USA TODAY is a multi-platform news and information media company. Founded in 1982, USA TODAY's mission is to serve as a forum for better understanding and unity to help make the USA truly one nation. Today, through its newspaper, website and mobile platforms, USA TODAY connects readers and engages the national conversation. USA TODAY, the nation's number one newspaper in print circulation with an average of more than 1.8 million daily, and USATODAY.com, an award-winning newspaper website  launched in 1995, reach a combined 5.9 million readers daily. USA TODAY is a leader in mobile applications with more than seven million downloads on mobile devices.  The USA TODAY brand also includes USA TODAY Education and USA TODAY Sports Weekly. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

SOURCE USA TODAY