With the recent Basketball & Hockey Championships arriving at their 2019 Season’s conclusions, professional sports – & all the sensory excitement that comes with it – is on the mind of many a fan…& AV integrator. (BTW – congrats to the 2019 Basketball champs, Toronto Raptors & Hockey victors, St. Louis Blues!)
In this age of technological wonder, the use of well-placed AV can make or break the sports venue experience. According to AVIXA’s Marketing Opportunity Analysis Report on Sports Venues, a fan survey reveals that “When fans are very satisfied with all of the AV aspects of their venue, they are almost always very satisfied overall.” (And that satisfaction translates into big money for venue executives!) “The data makes it clear that AV integration is a high-stakes investment for sports executives.”
To feed the need of stimuli-ravenous fans, sports arenas are thinking outside of the usual box of scoreboards & advertising signage – & expanding their audio & video placement beyond interior spaces, to those outside of their buildings. “This is a market to watch,” says Sean Wargo, Senior Director of Market Intelligence, AVIXA. “Venues & events are expected to produce $27.7 billion in pro-AV revenue worldwide…& grow at a healthy rate in the next five years, according to our Industry Outlook & Trends Report (IOTA).” AVIXA also reports that nearly 100% of venue executives surveyed, plan to upgrade their audio equipment in the next 12 months – something that audio manufacturers like Octasound & Samsung are sure to be very excited about. Video displays & projection are the next most popular planned AV purchases. (octasound.com & samsung.com)
Digital signage can remarkably transform the experience at any sports venue. According to Digital Signage Today – sports arenas are in a fierce competition for an audience with…THE COUCH. “The progression of in-home entertainment technology has put a dent in the ticket sales for live sports events,” so the venues themselves have to assure fans that they can WOW them outside of the comfort of their man caves & family rooms. An example of an arena stepping-up to the challenge is the AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami – home of the MIAMI HEAT Basketball Team. They transformed an adjacent unused outdoor plaza, with the installation of five custom-built cylindrical LED displays, & a stage with a digital display mounted behind it. All of the technology worked in tandem with the plaza’s music, lights, & sound system, creating an amazing immersive experience for the fans. This new space has transformed previously abandoned real estate into a huge revenue-generator for the AmericanAirlines Arena & the HEAT.
LED displays like those offered by Planar, LG, & Barco can also be used to up the ante in the more private spaces of an arena. Specifically, Club Level rooms being upgraded with newer, larger, & more crystal-clear display screens, are making fan engagement much more fun & exciting. Professional sports teams can offer these upper-echelon fans a heightened experience which they could not possibly get while couch-surfing at home. Augmented reality, virtual reality, & unique camera angles create unparalleled riveting adventures for these lucky game-goers, which will surely harken them back to the stadium more frequently than ever before. (planar.com, lg.com, & barco.com)
CAPTUS SYSTEMS is the winning team for all of commercial Audio-Visual needs. For every type of project from small huddle spaces – to gargantuan sports stadiums – we will meet any design with skill, expertise, & ingenuity. Give us a call at 212-400-1616 – or e-mail us at hello@captussystems.com. GO TEAM!!!
Thank you!