Inspiration Station: How Technology Enhances the Live Experience

Technology Enhancing The Fan Experience in Stadiums

In stadiums, fans have new expectations around what match days are like – they want to be entertained before, during, and after the game.

Major players in the smart stadium sector are focusing on the integration of advanced technologies to provide an immersive experience for fans. The global smart stadium market is expected to grow from $7 billion in 2021 to $9 billion in 2022. The market is expected to reach $22 billion in 2026.

“We’re competing against the 80-inch television in your living room,” said New York Islanders owner Jon Ledecky, after opening the $1 billion UBS Arena. “All these new arenas will have to give fans a reason to get up – go to their car and come to the event. If we don’t have a first-class experience, they’re going to watch the game at home.”

Augmented Reality

The Dallas Cowboys Use Augmented Reality that allows fans to ‘Pose With The Pros’. A photo kiosk located inside the 5G-enabled AT&T Stadium is offering fans the chance to snag a photo alongside a handful of their favorite Dallas Cowboy players.

The Future of Hologram Technology

Holograms are becoming even more real.

Proto, a company that allows a life-size hologram inside a 7-foot-tall box to interact with the audience, is at the forefront of the technology.

Driven by the pandemic to rethink work rules, corporations see holograms as an innovative way to communicate with employees and customers while cutting down on travel, whether for small meetings or larger conferences. What makes Proto unique is it requires the box, which creates the illusion of depth. Using pre-recorded footage or beaming in real time, Porto can bring keynote speakers, entertainment, or remote audiences into the same space.

Coldplay’s Most Sustainable Tour Yet Has Kicked Off.

The band is making its “Music Of The Spheres” World Tour as sustainable and low-carbon as possible. To do this, they have now installed technology into every show – sourcing energy from solar panels, sustainable biofuels, and even through the audience’s movements.

Kinetic dance floors help generate energy to power the show through audience movement. Fans can also hop on one of the electricity-generating bikes that power the lights and cuts mainstream electricity usage down even more.

Solar panels are installed on venues ahead of each show, and the tour bus will be powered with biofuel where possible. To help cut energy usage for lighting and special effects, the show will upgrade to more efficient equipment, including low-energy LED screens, laser, and lighting systems, and a PA system with up to 50% less power consumption.

The band will also take steps to maximize water efficiency, cut waste, and encourage recycling. Fans will be able to drink free water with reusable aluminum cups and are encouraged to bring their own reusable bottles. In fact at some venues, the sale of single-use plastic water bottles will be banned entirely.

“We’re very conscious that the planet is facing a climate crisis,” the band wrote. “So we’ve spent the last two years consulting with environmental experts to make this tour as sustainable as possible and, just as importantly, to harness the tour’s potential to push things forward.”

Learn More here

Meta Store: A Hands-On Experience.

Meta opened Meta Store — their first retail space to discover their products; Meta Portal, Ray-Ban Stories, and Meta Quest 2 and try them out in person in Burlingame, California.

The Meta Store features an interactive display wall and an immersive demo area, where you can try games on the large, wall-to-wall curved LED screen that displays what you’re seeing in-headset. You’ll also get a 30-second mixed reality clip of your demo experience that’s yours to share.

Learn More here

NFT Vending Machines Emerge in New York

Vending machines dispense all sorts of offbeat things these days and now it’s time to add NFTs to the list.

NFTs are unique digital assets — often works of art, game characters, and other creative products — that are recorded on a blockchain.

The NFT ATM works very similarly to traditional ATMs. You can purchase NFTs through the machine with your credit or debit card, and it will dispense boxes that contain unique codes that you can redeem. To their surprise, buyers will not know what NFT they’re getting until they redeem it.