Korea’s Electronics & Telecommunications Research Institute said Monday it has developed an application for smartphones that will allow the production of virtual reality content without any additional hardware.

The institute designed the application with VR solution startup Nextaeon and developed an enabling technology called YouVR.

By downloading the app, a smartphone user can create VR content in which objects can move 360 degrees.

Considering virtual reality is growing at a slower-than-expected pace due to the high costs of professional cameras and expensive headsets, the institute and startup partnered to commercialize the new technology. 

The app produces 360-degree VR content by using a wireless rotator that moves smartphone cameras to take pictures and then connecting the photos with an exclusively developed stitching algorithm.

“We have found marketability of the app in the real estate, shopping and travel industries,” the institute said.

In September, Nextaeon launched the YouVR app and introduced it to mobile realtor app operator Hanbang.

The company established a US subsidiary in Silicon Valley last year, eyeing an expansion into the American real estate market.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)