As Jimmy Dugan, Tom Hank’s character in A League of their own, famously declared, “There’s no crying in baseball!” And while that rule may still apply to professional sports players, it couldn’t possibly apply to its fans. Not with the intensity and passion we see today. We’ve all seen the YouTube videos of little fans and grown men crying after their favorite team loses a big game. We’ve seen diehard sports fans resort to the destruction of their own property after an upset lose. We’ve also seen overjoyed fans rush the streets after a Stanley Cup win, or old men cry after seeing their team win the World Series for the first time in 86 years.
It’s intense. It’s real. It’s raw. It’s universal. This doesn’t just happen in your hometown or city, but across the country and globe. Thanks to social media, these reactions have become easy and seamless to share with others. Yet it’s not just the reactions, but the ability to communicate, analyze, argue and celebrate that has brought sports fans closer than ever. Fans can now fuel a debate on Twitter in under 140 characters, or incite a heated discussion with one quick Facebook status update. Yet, while it’s no argument that social media has been a blessing to sports fans everywhere, its delivery is flawed during the action of the game.
Sports need your undivided attention. If your head is down and you’re scrolling through your social media feeds you will miss that big block or killer dunk. Yes, there is instant replay, but we both know that’s not the same as watching it live and being part of that excitement. And sports fans want to be part of the excitement.
But this is all changing thanks to the innovative thinking of Vidpresso, a company providing broadcasters and event producers with an easy way to insert social media into their live productions.
Recently, Vidpresso has been working with the Utah Jazz to implement social media into the television broadcast utilizing on-screen feeds. During two of the Utah Jazz’ preseason games, Vidpresso utilized its cloud computing and internet-native software to display real-time tweets surrounding the game right on screen. Instead of having their heads down looking at their phones, fans heads were up, following along as the game unfolded while simultaneously keeping up with the social media action live on-screen.
During the October 7th Utah Jazz preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Vidpresso placed the Twitter feed live on-air during the game and post-game show. It was during this time that #PORatUTA trended at #9 on Twitter. During the October 13th game versus the Los Angeles Clippers, Vidpresso integrated social media on four large monitors located around EnergySolutions Arena in addition to the live broadcast. It was also shown briefly on the Jumbotron. This time, #LACatUTA trended at #3 on Twitter.
This type of technology implementation has been made incredibly easy for broadcasters. Historically, broadcasters have depended on proprietary, expensive hardware to create on-air solutions. This required downloading, converting and uploading files into a playback machine—a lengthy process. But with Vidpresso’s software, they can display tweets live on screen using just a web browser, making the process incredibly affordable and easy.
Sports fans have passion and they love to share that passion with others, whether it’s despair or ecstasy. While social media has been a viable vehicle for this type of interaction, it has been flawed during the live action of the game. That is until now. Now fans can stay connected while staying engaged in the games they love.
