By Erika Muir

ocV!BE Sports & Entertainment is pleased to announce that Kim Bedier, CVE, has been named the Senior Vice President & General Manager of ocV!BE. Opening in 2024, ocV!BE will be a world-class live entertainment district featuring Orange County’s premier entertainment venue, Honda Center, as its anchor.

Bedier brings over 25 years of strategic vision and venue management expertise to ocV!BE. She comes from the City of Tacoma, Washington, where she was the Director of Venues & Events for Tacoma Dome, Greater Tacoma Convention Center, Cheney Stadium, Theater on the Square, and the Pantages and Rialto Theaters. Under Bedier’s leadership, Tacoma Venues & Events was honored with the 2019 Venue Excellence Award by IAVM. Also in 2019, the Tacoma Dome achieved its highest ever Pollstar ranking, #14 in North America and #24 in the world, and in 2020 the Greater Tacoma Convention Center was named a Top North American Venue by EXHIBITOR magazine.

“I am thrilled to join the dedicated team at ocV!BE and Honda Center,” Bedier said. “This is a dream opportunity to join an outstanding operation as they grow their entertainment footprint in Orange County and build a fan experience like no other place in the world.”

Bedier previously served as the General Manager of Comcast Arena (now Angel of the Winds Arena) in Everett, WA. As General Manager, she founded and chaired the Western Hockey League Arena Advisory Committee, delivered multiple successful in-house concert promotions, and served as the Director of Western Canadian Business Development for Global Spectrum. During her tenure, Comcast Arena was awarded the inaugural IAVM Venue Excellence Award for Top Arena in 2010 and nominated for Pollstar Best New Concert Venue in 2004. Bedier has also held leadership roles at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena) and the Crystal Centre in Grande Prairie, Alberta, and oversaw an international work crew at the Olympic Medals Plaza during the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Games.

Throughout her career, she has been honored and awarded by numerous high-profile organizations. Bedier’s career recognitions include being named to the inaugural class of Venues Today Women of Influence, Entertainment Venue Executive Luminary by Facilities & Events Management, Venue Executive of the Year by International Entertainment Buyers Association (IEBA), Ray W. Ward Award for excellence in education by IAVM Venue Management School, The Stadium Business Summit 2019 Executive of the Year finalist, A-list Western Arena Executive by Facilities & Events Management, and Pollstar’s Venue Executive of the Year nominee.

“We are pleased to welcome industry leader Kim Bedier to our team this fall,” said ocV!BE Chief Executive Officer Tim Ryan. “Her commitment to the live event community is unparalleled, and her wealth of experience and knowledge makes her an exceptional addition to our organization.”

During an unprecedented year in the live entertainment industry, ocV!BE Sports & Entertainment has continued to expand its team with new hires across multiple departments. The first phase of ocV!BE is scheduled to open in 2024, with the full project being completed in 2028 and becoming a showcase for the Summer Olympics when Honda Center hosts Indoor Volleyball. This $3 billion, 95-acre, mixed-use community will surround Honda Center, with new live entertainment venues, more than 30 new restaurant offerings, 1.1 million square feet of office space, two hotels, 1,500 residential units, and 10 acres of parks. ocV!BE will provide a full range of lifestyle amenities and entertainment, activating the district daily for the enjoyment of its residents and guests.

Erica Muir is Manager, Media & Communications for the Honda Center.

By Stacie Bauer

For 170 years, World Expos, or World’s Fairs, have provided a platform to showcase the innovations that have shaped the world we live in today. Expo 2020 Dubai will continue that tradition with the latest technology from around the globe. In October 2021, the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa, or South Asia will open its doors as one of the most important in exposition history.

Ungerboeck is proud to power the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 as a Silver partner with their event and venue management platform.

The USA Pavilion will benefit from Ungerboeck’s proven end-to-end event management software for venues, including Online Event Registration, the Event Portal, real-time event updates and details, and our Room Diagramming solution. Ungerboeck’s platform will allow staff to seamlessly manage the event details, within the spaces of the Pavilion.

“As a U.S.-based and globally operating company, we at Ungerboeck are especially honored to power the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 with our technology. World Expos are iconic events, and we are proud to be a central element of success within this prestigious Expo. Ungerboeck’s solutions and services are on offer to power other international pavilions as well.,” said Ungerboeck President and CEO Manish Chandak.

Acting Commissioner General of the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai Philip Frayne said, “The USA is always creating and innovating. We are proud to be partnering with Ungerboeck and implementing their state-of-the-art solutions to power our USA Pavilion with tools that will support our team and make the visitor journey more enjoyable. The software will help ensure the smooth execution of all of our events, including the dynamic speakers and diverse cultural performers that we have planned throughout the six months.”

Stacie Bauer is Event & Sponsorship Coordinator at Ungerboeck Systems International.

By Communications Staff/Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center has embarked on an innovative and ambitious plan to upgrade an already award-winning employee culture by placing ownership of the plan referred to as “the Culture Project,” in the hands of employees.

The Innovation Lab (photo of employees celebrating the introduction of the lab) is the culmination of a collaborative effort between trepwise, a local growth consulting firm, and New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center employees to develop a culture that is fueled by accountability and collaboration, and then driven by employee engagement, feedback, and recognition. To ensure the success of the Culture Project, Convention Center employees are tasked with setting goals, providing timelines, and ownership of all aspects of this plan.

Through inclusive employee engagement and collaborative ideation, trepwise engaged employees in a design process with the goal of creating a culture that rewards creativity, accountability, and risk-taking. Trepwise coached Culture Project Design Teams in designing solutions to reach these goals using a human-centered approach called “Design Thinking.”

Out of this process came the Innovation Lab, which consists of three teams: Belief Biologists, Communication Chemists, and Recognition Researchers. The project leads were selected from front line employees and mid-level management positions and provides an opportunity for them to grow their skills and demonstrate ability to lead and transition into higher positions.

A fourth group, Test Technicians, is a group of impartial employees who will pilot new software and processes created by the other laboratory members.

The Innovation Lab team leads were announced at an all-staff meeting at the Convention Center on Thursday, July 15. The employees will drive the timeline of implementation with a “sense of urgency,” but sufficient time will be allowed for demonstrating results.

“By letting our employees steer the ship on this project, they find better ways to collaborate and communicate, which will create better feedback tools we can use to reward innovation, creativity, and risk taking,” said Convention Center President Michael J. Sawaya. “In the long term, this will improve customer satisfaction in a hypercompetitive environment, supporting our vision to be a leading-edge organization known for innovative delivery of exceptional event experiences in a world-class destination,” Sawaya concluded.

“We are grateful for our partners at trepwise for guiding us to a forward-thinking, cutting edge approach to employee culture,” said Tim Tumminello, Director of People Services at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. “This will not only attract the best and brightest from the pool of potential job seekers, but it will also help us retain the best employees we currently have on our roster. As the job market gets more competitive, we are excited to put our best foot forward on this critically important aspect of what we do here at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.”

By Hollywood Park Press

Samsung Electronics America and SoFi Stadium are proud to formally reveal the new name of the center-hung videoboard at SoFi Stadium – The Infinity Screen by Samsung. The state-of-the-art Infinity Screen not only features the most LEDs ever used in a sports or entertainment venue, but also has the first and only 4K, end-to-end video production in a stadium.

“It’s been a long time coming, but we are so proud to announce The Infinity Screen by Samsung,” said Mark Quiroz, Vice President, Display Division, Samsung Electronics America. “SoFi Stadium is one of the NFL’s crown jewels and it has been a privilege and an honor to work with the team on this project. We are incredibly excited to see fans engage with the Infinity Screen in-person for the first time.”

The process of naming the videoboard at SoFi Stadium took many months of consideration and testing, with the team reviewing over a dozen names that communicated Samsung and SoFi Stadium’s overall vision. The name Infinity comes from Samsung’s long history with bezel-less displays and the videoboard’s unique design. From mobile devices to displays like The Wall, Samsung is known for its infinite displays and the Infinity Screen at SoFi Stadium is no exception.

“We are excited to introduce the official name for our 70,000 square-foot, dual-sided video board, The Infinity Screen by Samsung. The Infinity Screen creates an absolutely stunning presence inside SoFi Stadium,” said Jason Gannon, managing director, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park. “It is powered by the largest graphics control system in the history of sports and is already synonymous with the next-level fan experience at SoFi Stadium.”

Built for the future and positioned 122 feet above the playing field, The Infinity Screen by Samsung has the largest LED content playback system ever deployed. With nearly 80 million pixels spaced 8 millimeters from center to center, each panel can be uniquely or congruently programmed with statistics, live and/or animated content. The different sizes of the video panels are designed to serve spectators in every seat, from the sideline to the upper deck. Teams on the sidelines and fans sitting in the lower bowl of the stadium will view the inside of screen as it sits directly across from their line of view, while guests in the upper bowl will view the outer panels of the videoboard.

In addition to the unparalleled technology featured inside SoFi Stadium, Samsung technology will be represented throughout Hollywood Park, reaching fans across the district’s residential, office and retail areas through the connected mobile app.

Photo: Courtesy of SoFi Stadium

The Phoenix Suns and Mercury basketball teams are partnering with the plant-based fiber technology company Footprint in a deal to rename their arena and do away with single-use plastic at the facility.

Biodegradable, compostable and recyclable products from the company will be integrated into the Footprint Center’s offerings over the next year under the deal announced July 16. The team and Footprint declined to disclose financial terms of the long-term agreement.

A five-year accord between Phoenix Suns Arena and Talking Stick Resort expired in November 2020. The recently renovated stadium, upgraded at a cost of $245 million, seats more than 18,000 people and is the home of the NBA finalist Phoenix Suns.

Naming rights for an NBA arena traditionally cost millions of dollars per season, with contracts usually signed by companies with nationally recognizable names, like Staples, which secured naming rights for the Staples Center, home to the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers.

One of the things that stuck out to Suns owner and managing partner Robert Sarver was Footprint’s mission—to create products that eliminate single-use and short-term-use plastics.

“The more we got to know them, we saw a unique connection to really make a difference with them and that’s exciting,” Sarver said.

Photo by Phoenix Suns/Christy Radecic