EarthCam
Available in | English |
---|---|
Created by | Brian Cury (CEO and Founder) |
URL | earthcam |
Commercial | Yes, advertising and licensing of its proprietary webcam content. |
Launched | 1996 |
Current status | Active |
EarthCam, Inc., based in Hackensack, New Jersey, United States, provides webcam content, technology and services. Founded in 1996, the privately held company delivers millions of images daily and develops technology to manage camera networks worldwide. They were integral to the webcast on New Year's Eve 1999 that broadcast the turn of the new millennium. The website, EarthCam.com, was a Webby Award winner.
History
Brian Cury, CEO and founder of EarthCam, Inc., launched EarthCam.com in 1996 with a mission to build a network of webcams offering views of unique and popular destinations throughout the world. The site quickly became a place "Where the World Watches the World", offering visitors internationally access to thousands of webcams.
As the company grew, EarthCam expanded beyond building its network of tourism cameras and extended its reach into other industries by developing and delivering technology for many applications in verticals including construction, transportation, and surveillance. With that concept came the creation of EarthCam.net, a site for businesses and organizations to purchase webcams and EarthCam's proprietary software to manage their camera networks.
EarthCam and other live webcam services have resulted in a huge impact upon entertainment and business, allowing for online "travel," meetings, and easy access to knowledge.[2]
In May 2015, EarthCam announced that it had chosen Davis Brody Bond - Architect of the 9/11 Memorial Museum - to design its new 10 acre campus in Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.[3]
Websites
Expanding beyond the pages of its flagship site, EarthCam.com, EarthCam's network of websites has grown to include EarthCam.net, WebCamStore.com, and EarthCamMobile.com, which cater to both consumers and professionals. Mobile applications for accessing EarthCam's live webcams and for clients to control their private cameras are available for Apple Inc. or Android (operating system) Devices.
EarthCam.com is a network of scenic webcams offering a complete searchable database of views of interesting and iconic places around the world. In 1999 it was claimed 20 people per day were adding their webcams to the website.[4] In 2006 the website was a Webby Award Winner in the Tourism category.[5] It is viewed by fans in 192 countries and ranks among the top 1% of all websites, according to Alexa.com.[6]
One of the first highly publicized events that EarthCam produced, labeled "Webcast of the Century", featured celebrations from around the world at the turn of the new millennium on New Year's Eve 1999 / New Year's Day 2000. 100 cameras were located across the world, taking pictures every 30 seconds, viewed using an interactive world map on EarthCam.com.[4][7]
EarthCam has built a reputation for creating opportunities for viewers to experience events without leaving their homes. Whether it's a webcast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, Mardi Gras from New Orleans' famous Bourbon Street or visiting the pandas' den at Zoo Atlanta,[8] EarthCam brings viewers to each location through their live webcams.
Virtual travel also becomes possible with webcams located at major worldwide tourist attractions such as London's Abbey Road,[9] the Eiffel Tower in Paris, São Paulo's Avenida Paulista, Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles and the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign".
By visiting EarthCam, viewers have the capability to see historical places and landmarks around the world, especially in the US. EarthCam cameras located at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial[10] in Washington DC, the Flight 93 National Memorial[11] in Shanksville, PA, Seattle's Space Needle, Wall Street's notable Charging Bull and more deliver unique views, both live and archived. The archived images can be edited together to produce time-lapse videos such as the Ground Zero 10 year time-lapse[12] which was created from images captured at the site from September 2001 through September 2011.
In October 2011 EarthCam built and installed the 'TorchCams', custom camera systems that generate live video and widescreen images, giving visitors panoramic views from the Statue of Liberty torch, the location that has been closed to the public since 1916.[13][14][15] The five cameras were donated to the National Park Service by EarthCam, Inc.[16][17]
EarthCam.net provides live streaming video, megapixel, wireless and solar powered camera systems, along with managed services, for corporate clients and government agencies worldwide, including the General Services Administration (GSA). Powered by EarthCam's Control Center 7 webcam management service that is delivered as a user controllable SaaS (Software as a Service) interface, EarthCam's professional webcam technology solutions are utilized to view, document, and promote projects. Additional advanced imaging technology services are offered including gigapixel images, aerial photography and satellite imagery.
Projects documented by EarthCam
- National September 11 Memorial & Museum[18]
- The Panama Canal Expansion[19]
- Smithsonian Institution
- San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge[20]
- Madison Square Garden
- Hong Kong Disneyland
- Los Angeles International Airport
- Ivanpah Solar Generating Field (Ivanpah Solar Power Facility)
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Denver Union Station
- George W. Bush Presidential Library[21]
- National Institutes of Health
- Guggenheim and Louvre Museums in Abu Dhabi
- New Levi's Stadium
- Barclays Center
- Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
- Lake Champlain Bridge
- Perot Museum of Nature and Science
- OliverMcMillan[22]
References
- ^ "earthcam.com Site Overview". Alexa.com. 2014-04-24. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "The Technology of Live Webcams Has a Huge Impact". Live Global Cams. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
- ^ "EarthCam Headquarters Davis Brody Bond". Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- ^ a b Catherine Greenman, Who, What, When, Where and Y2K; The Stay-at-Homes Have Plenty of Chances to See the Parties, or Problems, Unfold, The New York Times, December 30, 1999. Retrieved 2012-01-27.
- ^ [1][dead link ]
- ^ "earthcam.com Site Overview". Alexa.com. 2014-04-24. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ Mary Huhn, CINDY MARGOLIS'LL DO; TIMES SQ., New York Post, December 28, 1999. Retrieved 2012-01-27.
- ^ "Zoo Atlanta Panda Cam". Zooatlanta.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "Crossing Cam". Abbey Road. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "EarthCam - Build the Dream". Archive.is. 2012-08-04. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "Live Webcam | Flight 93 National Memorial". Honorflight93.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "World Trade Center Cams". EarthCam.com. 2014-08-30. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ Jonathan Allen, Statue of Liberty to sport webcams from its torch, Reuters, October 26, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-27.
- ^ "Torch Cam - The Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island". Ellisisland.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "US celebrates Statue of Liberty's 125th birthday". WSJ.com. 2011-10-28. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ [2][dead link ]
- ^ Kitty Bean Yancey, Statue of Liberty turns 125, gets webcams, USA Today, October 27, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-27.
- ^ "9/11 Memorial Webcam | National September 11 Memorial & Museum". 911memorial.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "Multimedia". PanCanal.com. 2001-05-15. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ "Construction Cams". Bay Bridge Info. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
- ^ [3][dead link ]
- ^ "EarthCam Construction Camera - OliverMcMillan - Buckhead Atlanta". Earthcam.net. Retrieved 2016-08-17.