The following interview is part of our ongoing Expert Series that asks C-level professionals, team presidents, league executives, athletic directors and other sports influencers about their latest thoughts and insights on new technologies impacting the sports industry.
Name: Brendan Reilly
Company: EON Sports VR
Position: Chief Executive Officer/Co-Founder
Brendan Reilly is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of EON Sports VR, a virtual reality platform that helps deliver innovative fan experiences and also provide athletes a unique medium to train. To date, EON has worked with athletic departments at Penn State and the University of Miami (Fla.) in addition to MLB organizations such as the Tampa Bay Rays.
1) What utilization of EON Sports’ virtual reality platform in professional or college sports has recently blown you away?
We have two different divisions — the first division is Major League Baseball training. The guys on the product development team and our baseball operations division have made it the most life-like simulator I have ever stepped in of any kind. In some cases, we even have to remind the athletes that there are projectors and screens involved! On the fan experience said of the company, I would have to say our ability to plug into and work with any type of data. The future will not be restricted to simply virtual or augmented reality but rather a mix of both. It will also require some serious UX, UI that makes content engaging and keeps users coming back for more.
2) If you had to invest in one technology that would alter the sports landscape, what would it be and why?
You mean besides a virtual and augmented reality platform? It would be whoever makes the glass in augmented reality glasses. That asset is going to be utilized across many devices for years to come.
3) If money were no object, what technology would you build or buy to help you do your job better?
Volumetric visualization…holographic Skype meetings! Think Princess Leia-type projections similar to augmented reality in the room. It has potential to really cut down on travel time and save me a lot of early mornings and late nights.
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4) As a sports fan, what sports-related service, app, product, etc., could you not live without and why?
I find this question the most fascinating because my answers six months ago would have been very different. I don’t play fantasy sports so for me being able to check and tap into Snapchat is something I find myself doing more and more. It’s amazing how our content consumption habits evolve and change over time.
5) If you had to project 20 years into the future, how will most fans watch their favorite sports teams?
Your living room will transport you to wherever you want to be via augmented, virtual and mixed reality. I think it’s a lot closer than 20 years; I think that’s more like five years, but 20 years from now it could be Matrix-like worlds real navigating it. Not to get too geeky but Moore’s Law is a fascinating thing as it pertains to its impact on the visualization industry.
6) Give us your bold prediction about a form of technology that will be integral to sports in general over the next 12 months and why?
Augmented reality. The possibilities are endless. Value can be provided in venue as part of a broadcast and so much more. I always joke if my wife will watch and engage with content through a certain visualization medium then that medium has a real shot at being a game changer. She has a short attention span so she’s a great litmus test for all the crazy things we are up to.