Fans take to ChoiceSeats: Interactive technology, e-commerce expand to sporting events

As soon as one technology is accepted, another seems ready to take its place. Consider TV without a remote control. Or can we? Who has not spent more than five minutes searching for the remote, when the TV is only 4 feet from the couch? Technological advances have offered an increasing amount of convenience and comfort, as well as access to information and services.

This past September, New York's Madison Square Garden became a beneficiary of evolving technology and the public's demand for information. Williams Communications-backed ChoiceSeat outfitted four sections of club seating and all luxury suites at the venue with interactive seats. ChoiceSeat plans to upgrade more than 3000 seats for the 2000-2001 seasons.

The technology consists of a high-bandwidth LAN and cable TV distribution system that connects Intel's Celeron processor-based touch-screen computers, which are integrated directly into the back of a stadium seat headrest or onto a table top in a stadium suite. The units are linked to Intel's Xeon processor-based Web and database servers located within Madison Square Garden.ChoiceSeat officially piloted the technology with the San Di ego Padres at Qualcomm Stadium in 1997 and 1998. It also carried the broadcasts of Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII, the 1998 World Series games in San Diego and home games of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays within their respective stadiums. Rangers, Knicks and Liberty fans at Madison Square Garden will be the first to experience commercial implementation of the technology.

"This truly is convergence. It enhances the fans' experience by having a television and computer right at the seat," said Jeff Dawes, vice president of programming and application development for ChoiceSeat.

Before advancing its technology to Madison Square Garden, ChoiceSeat signed a development agreement with Intel in November. Intel is helping the company develop PC-based solutions that allow the delivery of personalized instant replays, real-time statistics and other interactive sports to the stadium seats.

Some of the features that those sitting in ChoiceSeats can access include live, isolated camera angles; multiperspective replays with slow motion; sports highlights and statistics; and stored video and outside network feeds. With these capabilities, the "fans become their own directors," Dawes said.

In addition to the interactive features, fans have e-commerce options, such as placing food, beverage and merchandise orders without leaving their seats. The system accepts credit cards and hosts traditional, interactive, direct response or content sponsorship advertising.

Intel's interest in new interactive content drove it to team with ChoiceSeat. Providing access to multiple views of game action and delivering games not broadcast in the local area to interested fans was also a draw, said Ken Rhodes, director of the enhanced video services group at Intel. "Having pioneered this [particular model], the company will take this straight forward into other stadiums," he said.

Rhodes is positive about the technology, which he said can travel via the Internet or be broadcast outside the stadium using DSL or cable modem technology. "The toughest technical challenge will be to get multiple views of action delivered over the Internet that are good quality," he said. "We will find ways to work with that."

Another potential challenge is channel switching latency. Intel is working with streaming media companies to address this.

ChoiceSeat currently is in discussions with several sporting facilities, said Dawes, who believes this type of interactive experience will be the future of the sporting world.

"It will not be about the game anymore. Entertainment destinations are part of a wave of emerging enhanced entertainment [applications]," he said. "No company can do just one stadium. To tie in to a national network makes sense. Stay tuned."