Sports teams are building new venues across the United States and are increasingly looking to technology as a way to further engage fans with the team and the game. The trend is especially visible in stadium renovation projects like that of Philips Arena in Atlanta.
Now, two digital tech companies — Built.io and BeyondCurious — have teamed up on a way to give sports teams and their stadiums a digital edge in fan experience. On Thursday, the two firms announced their industry-first Sports & Entertainment Digital Accelerator. Built.io provides digital tech solutions such as app and API services and a cross-channel content management system. BeyondCurious helps its client organizations incorporate digital solutions into their work through research, design, and strategy.
The Accelerator is a six-week program that combines the efforts of Built.io’s Digital Fan Experience Platform and BeyondCurious’ CatalystGo service, promising to provide “immediate value and impact to participants through actionable insights, design concepts, prototypes and demos.” The Digital Fan Experience Platform was recently created to help teams foster a closer connection with their fans by incorporating new technologies and using data to increase revenue.
“Sports franchises that participate in the Sports & Entertainment Digital Accelerator will benefit from BeyondCurious’ expertise in how to properly embrace technology and Built.io’s platform that enables any organization to adapt to the digital world of APIs, microservices, IoT and connectedness quickly and easily,” Neha Sampat, Built.io’s CEO and co-founder, said in the announcement.
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Currently, the accelerator program is accepting only a limited number of applications to be able to ensure a high-quality experience for those teams that do get accepted, according to the press release. Its first two customers are the Sacramento Kings and Miami Heat, and the program’s strategic partners include Ticketmaster and Amazon Web Services, among others. Now, BeyondCurious is in the mix.
“BeyondCurious is the services partner and Built.io is the platform partner. Both companies bring a strategic, agile and innovative approach to digital transformation,” Sampat added. “This is an exciting collaboration that equips forward-thinking sports teams with a digital edge.”
On Monday, July 17, Built.io and BeyondCurious will present the Sports & Entertainment Digital Accelerator at the Sports and Entertainment Alliance in Technology conference in Atlanta, where teams will also be able to sign up for the accelerator. Executives from the Heat and Kings will join Built.io and BeyondCurious for a panel on “Creating the Digital Fan Experience of Tomorrow.”
“Our audience will learn firsthand how the Kings and HEAT are using innovative technology—including apps and connected services—to achieve greater fan engagement via a seamless, frictionless, and intuitive experience,” BeyondCurious CEO and founder Nikki Barua said in the announcement.
With the Digital Accelerator program up and running, it is increasingly possible that teams at all levels across the country will embrace all types of emerging technology to engage fans and provide a constantly unique experience at the stadium.