‘Venues should pull up their tech socks’

Image: Coliseum GSVA

Tim Hoddy who is a top shot in the software company Uniguest puts across his point crisp and clear. He affirms that in the fast-paced world of technological advancement, companies like Uniguest make the in-stadium experience of fans something to cherish about.

Hoddy says that there can be no two opinions on the fact that a great stadium experience bolsters fan loyalty and fan engagement is central to driving these fans to the stadia. He asserts that companies like Uniguest with their incisive technology further drives the fan engagement quotient and help venues laugh all the way to the bank.

Tim Hoddy, who is presently in the role of Vice-President (Sales), Uniguest, has been involved in the delivery of Tripleplay IPTV and Digital Signage for over a decade in the United Kingdom and Europe and has worked with world-class venues across the globe to help them deliver best of breed technology for their venues.

Tim Hoddy, VP Sales, Uniguest, UK, tells ‘Coliseum’ in an exclusive interaction that going by the massive technological strides world over, venues today can no longer remain complacent and to draw the new generation of fans they will have to pull up their tech socks. More pearls of wisdom right from the horse’s mouth…
 

Uniguest

Nashville (US)-based Uniguest is a world leader in providing secure engagement technologies, giving its customers the opportunity to connect with their audience via modern and effective digital channels. Through its Digital Engagement Platform, a suite of digital signage, public-use, enterprise video and meeting room technologies, Uniguest deliver connected content from anywhere to anywhere for its customers and partners.

Tim Hoddy, who is a die-hard fan of the Premier League club Manchester City F.C. (UK), says correct use of digital and visual technology in live venues can increase return on investment (ROI), help keep visitors/fans safe, increase fan engagement, increase connection to fans and the community, streamline digital operations, and reduce emissions and energy bills using technology.

He starts off by talking about fan engagement which he says is key in the venue business and the Uniguest technology is helping venues to engage with fans better and rake in the revenue.

Providing details on Uniguest, he asserted that the company is the “most trusted provider of digital engagement technology across a lot of different vertical sectors -banking, education and we have got a very specific solution perfect for stadia and arena.”
 

Tripleplay By Uniguest

Tripleplay is an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) and Digital Signage solution designed to help businesses deliver any media content to any device; safely and securely.

Informed Hoddy, “For the last 10 years, I have been representing a company called Tripleplay. In 2019, Tripleplay was acquired by Uniguest. So, Uniguest is our company and we have the Tripleplay platform. Except for the logo – ‘Tripleplay By Uniguest’ – nothing has changed with this acquisition. Tripleplay is still the world-class best single platform solution delivering IPTV, video streaming and digital signage, easy-to-use, has got flexible hardware and easy to install.”

However, with Tripleplay coming under the Uniguest umbrella, it is part of a bigger group, has got more investment, is able to offer 24/7 support 365 days in a year, and is being able to bring more technology into the market.”
 

The Constant Factor

Hoddy said that some things never change – “Fans will always look forward to having an enthralling experience at the stadium and venues should adopt strategies to keep fans and visitors engaged in the venue.”
 

Harlequin F.C.

The Harlequins F.C. is a professional rugby union club that plays in Premiership Rugby, the top level of English rugby union. Their home ground is the Twickenham Stoop, located in Twickenham, South-West London (UK).
 

Twickenham Stoop

The Twickenham Stoop Stadium is a sports stadium located in South-West London, England (UK). The stadium is home to Harlequins F.C. The stadium has a capacity of 14,800 and is situated just across the road from the 82,000-capacity Twickenham Stadium.
 

Tripleplay Leg-up

Hoddy further informed that the Harlequins have brought in “positive changes” in their home ground by implementing the Tripleplay IPTV and signage platform.
 

‘Destination Venue’

The Harlequins have always dreamt of making the ‘Stoop’ a ‘Destination Venue’. And Tripleplay helped them realize this dream as “digital signage and IPTV was never a nice-to-have. It was always essential for what they wanted to do in terms of creating this ‘Destination Venue’ and providing an inviting and entertaining ambience at the ‘Stoop’.”
 

Creating A Destination

The Harlequins set up a fun zone in their home venue and Tripleplay was roped into the project to ensure that the distribution of live video could help them materialize their ‘Destination Venue’ idea.

IPTV and signage helped the Harlequins create ‘Destination Venue’. They introduced novel ideas like the ‘L Wrap’ where fan messages were included in the bottom and interesting contents were also introduced which enticed fans to the venue and gave them reasons enough to stay back longer – “They started experimenting with different content in different areas of the venue and it hit off.”

He continued, “The Tripleplay software is driving content to some very big screens like in the case of Resorts World Las Vegas. Our system has been deployed in stadia since 2010. Sixty percent of the Premier League clubs (UK) use our system, 40 percent of the Major League Soccer (MLS) clubs and 20 percent of the different sports and disciplines, 10 National Stadiums one of which is the Twickenham Stadium.
 

Play of Colors

At the 82,500-capacity MetLife Stadium in New Jersey the Tripleplay system is driving content to the 3,000 screens in the venue with the ‘L Wrap’ interspersed with live TV – “It is a multipurpose facility so when the National Football League (NFL) team New York Jets play everything turns green and when the NFL team New York Giants play everything turns blue and when there is a concert things change.”
 

Conclusion

Tim Hoddy wrapped up by making a pertinent point, “Our challenge as a community and industry is always going to be how we can deliver our most memorable experience generating revenue in the easiest way possible. Digital media in video can be a very valuable tool in our strategy and lastly, we at Uniguest love taking up challenges and do not shy away from the same.”

Uniguest is helping in enhancing the in-stadium experience and also helping venues to deliver a fan experience that gives enough reasons to today’s fans to return to the stadium as well as spending their time and money.

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• fan engagement
• Tim Hoddy
• Uniguest

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