Google announced on its official blog, the launch of Nearby, “a new surface for users to discover and interact with the things around them.” This is an extension of the Nearby API which helped mobiles discover and interact with things around them. Google posted on their blog, “Imagine pulling up a barcode scanner when you’re at the store, or discovering an audio tour while you’re exploring a museum–these are the sorts of experiences that Nearby can enable. To make this possible, we're allowing developers to associate their mobile app or a website with a beacon.”
Google also added that, a number of developers have already started building such proximity-based experiences using the Nearby API. Here are some of the implementations that were mentioned:
– The Broad Museum, located in Los Angeles, offering in-app audio tours to visitors as they view various exhibits.
– United Airlines, a leading American airline, will help users have easier access to free in-flight entertainment in the form of free movies and TV shows
– The University of Notre Dame, offering virtual tours of the campus and important local sights to visitors.
Nearby will be supported by devices running Android Kitkat(4.4) & above. Also, select Google Cast and Android Wear watches, will support this. It will be rolled out as a part of the forthcoming Google Play Services' update.Google also released documentation for developers to help them deploy the Nearby API on their own apps.