eBay Classifieds has developed a service with augmented reality experts Junaio to give users a different way to access travel products and other goods.
The auction giant's marketplace division for local goods and services typically features hotel and activity deals alongside other products such as entertainment, motoring and electronics.
Now the service can also be accessed using a mobile phone's camera to pinpoint the location of deals in a particular location.
So, imagine a busy tourist area with a number of attractions such as museums and restaurants. By pointing the handset's camera around the street, a user can establish which venues have deals listed on eBay Classifieds.
Chief technology officer for Junaio creator Metaio, Peter Meier, says very little data is required from the user as the handset picks up the location automatically.
Once a product is selected from the camera screen, users are shown details and how to get access to the product or buy it directly from the existing eBay smartphone application.
The technology to handle the augmented reality system is available on both Android and iPhone handsets.
Here's a clip:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVQ5Gb_mx-Q