Two of our member venues have received Google Glass to experiment with in order to learn about the pros and cons of the technology when using it in a facility. We’ll be following their progress on the blog here and in FM magazine. This first blog post is written by Ruth Fajardo and Alex Hargis from the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, Texas.

OK, Google Glass…

Those are the command words you speak to enter the user interface for Google Glass, the latest embodiment in the next technological movement of wearable smart devices. The product is a pair of glasses that houses all the foundational inner workings of a smartphone. Google Glass allows the user, through voice command prompting or a miniature track pad, to make phone calls, record videos, take pictures, share content to Facebook/Twitter, surf the Web, process email, and find the nearest barbecue joint using GPS. All of these functions are visualized through a tiny prism embedded in a Robo Cop-esque eyepiece, allowing you to replicate essentially all your smartphone dependent tasks hands-free. The cutting edge technology harkens to Orwellian-like scenes from Minority Report or Brave New World, where with a few simple directives to a “Dave” or with a couple swishes of your hand you can begin flying a megaton, class A, intergalactic starship destroyer. Or at least that’s what the expectations around this piece of technology feels like. And if you can leverage this technology to zip around the cosmos, surely you can get it to sync with your menu boards at the bars to promote drink specials and raise your per caps, right?

Wrong. Well, who knows? Maybe it could. Maybe we think we’re in possession of a deluxe Swiss army knife and all we really have at this point is a really sharp stick. This is where we at the AT&T Performing Arts Center (PAC) in Dallas, Texas, is going to begin our journey. Even though the product is sleek, sexy, and comes with a litany of features that tittle the techie in all of us, we want to put it through the ringer and find out if we have the multipurpose tool of our dreams…or a stick. A really, really good looking and functional stick. Let’s not dog on a good ol’ fashioned stick.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be conducting a series of case studies to judge how this “face computer” can work for our campus in fun, creative, and useful ways. Our marketing department will have Glass first to try out the recording function for an artist POV. Glass will then run the gamut of front of house, security, production, and back to operations for data compiling. And while we embark on this journey, we’re going to document everything and ask a heck of a lot of questions. One of our biggest concerns is how our patrons will perceive, say, our patron services staff supervisors wearing Glass, and how will venues perceive Google Glass when they start appearing on the faces of our patrons? Would you allow the newest, smallest, publicly-available wearable technology in your venue? What’s the ROI on this technology if you have to provide it for all of your security supervisors? What privacy laws are potentially being infringed upon? Can you consider the purchase of this equipment as a capital expenditure line item?

The staff at the AT&T PAC is incredibly excited to dive into the unknown world of wearable technology. We hope the data collected from this pilot program can be shared to help lay a foundation for the usage of wearable technology and to identify the warning flags from its presence and help our colleagues mitigate associated risk. We just got our pair this past week and have already put in the hands of our IT director with the detailed instructions to “figure this thing out” and let us know some ground rules before issuing to departments. As we make headway into our case studies, we look forward to sharing our results and feedback. Hopefully there will be much revelation to balance out the overwhelming frustration of trying to make one piece of technology solve every problem that has ever plagued the venue management industry. So, here’s to the future. All we have to do is put it on, cross our fingers, and say, “OK, Google Glass…”

VIDEO: Pianist Andre’ Watts wore AT&T PAC’s Google Glass during a rehearsal for his recital in the Winspear Opera House.

(photo credit: Thomas Hawk via photopin cc)

There was a lot of news this past week. Here are some stories that caught our eyes.

Mass. House Approves $1.1B Convention Center Expansion
—The Boston Globe
“The new hotel and expansion of exhibit space would put Boston among the top convention destinations in the United States, according to James Rooney, executive director of the Convention Center Authority. He said the expansion, expected to be completed in 2019, would create thousands of jobs.”

Salvaged Metrodome Seats Find New Home in Woodbury
—Woodbury Bulletin
“After months spent establishing how to retrofit the stadium with the seats, the actual installation came together in a jiffy. McDermott worked with Stillwater-based Custom Craft Builders, and enlisted the help of parents and ballplayers.”

A Whispered Broadway Milestone No One’s Cheering
—Howard Sherman
“So while articles may be trumpeting record revenues and record attendance, they’re either downplaying, avoiding or ignoring the true breaking of the $100 threshold, preferring to lead with the allure of numbers in the millions (attendance) or billions (dollars). That’s a shame, because in terms of what matters to the average audience member, the average ticket price seems much more essential news. To me, that’s the headline.”

Barbican to Open New Creative Centre in East London
—The Stage
“Based in a Victorian warehouse beside the river Lea, the Fish Island Labs will be split into three spaces: private studios, a co-working space and a performance space…”

Andrews, Wilk Create Pitching App
—ESPN
“Based on the player’s age, Throw Like a Pro creates specific guidelines with regards to numbers of pitches. The rest calculator outlines appropriate rest prior to resuming pitching.”

(Image from the MCCA Facebook page)

Congratulations to IAVM member Kevin Bruder on his appointment as chairman of the board for TEAM Coalition. Bruder is president of Centennial Management Group, general manager of the Maverik Center in Utah, and CEO of the Utah Grizzlies Hockey Club. He represents IAVM on the Coalition.

“TEAM Coalition has been very successful reaching the major league sports venues with our responsibility messages and alcohol management training,” Bruder said. “I look forward to expanding the reach of the Coalition to other facilities while continuing the great relationship with all the member organizations. IAVM members like the Maverik Center have a great deal to gain from becoming more involved with TEAM Coalition. I am committed to help make that happen.”

Ray Whitworth, vice president of operations and security for Major League Soccer, will serve as the board’s vice chairman; and Carl Mittleman, president of Aramark Sports and Entertainment, will serve as second vice chairman and treasurer. Jordan Jiloty, director of public affairs for NASCAR was elected as third vice chairman and secretary.

“The success of TEAM Coalition depends on the commitment of our member organizations,” said IAVM member Jill Pepper, executive director of TEAM Coalition. “Without their support, we would not be able to achieve the accomplishments we have enjoyed of more than 50,000 facility personnel TEAM-certified annually and 972,000 sports and entertainment fans pledging to be designated drivers last year alone. I know our new officers will challenge the organization to find new and creative ways to reach a larger audience with our responsibility message.”

TEAM Coalition is a 21-member association whose mission is to enhance the entertainment experience, provide effective alcohol management training in public assembly facilities, and promote responsible alcohol consumption through the use of positive messages that reward responsible behavior and help to reduce negative alcohol-related incidents in facilities and on surrounding roadways.

I recently attended a lecture at a performing arts center. The seats were great. The sound was great. The presentation was great. Everything was great, except for the eager usher who emphatically told patrons not to take photos with their mobile phones. A phone would go up, and the usher rushed with a wagging finger toward the person.

A show at a theater is not my first rodeo. I’ve heard the requests to turn off our phones and to not take photos many times. I know the drill. I understand, too, how taking a photo can be distracting to the performers on stage. However, not every show is equal. In this instance, it was a lecture, and people just wanted to take a photo to post on a social media site to prove or brag they were in attendance.

Not every theater is the same. Some encourage the use of photos and posting them on social media channels (it’s free marketing). Maybe the venue I visited had a house policy of no photos, never, at all. Maybe the speaker didn’t want photos taken. If that’s the case, then say that via the PA system (e.g., “So-and-So requests that you not take photos.”).

Let’s face it, mobile devices are not going away. In fact, they’re getting smaller, more wearable, and less intrusive. They’re a part of our everyday lives, inside and outside venues.

According to a recent study conducted by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and InMobi, 89 percent of live performance fans conducted mobile activities in direct relation to performances they have attended in the last six months. These activities occurred during all stages of a live performance—before, during, and after.

“There is no question that mobile has become a central part of live entertainment events,” said Anna Bager, vice president and general manager of IAB’s Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence. “Whether learning about the next big rock concert to hit town or planning a trip to see the hottest show on Broadway, consumers who adore live performances are turning to mobile devices as part of the entertainment experience—signaling that marketers and agencies need to include mobile in their media strategy, if they want to successfully reach prospective ticket buyers.”

The study found that 22 percent of attendees check-in at a live performance via social apps, 31 percent use mobile devices to make plans before or after a show, and 41 percent purchase tickets directly through mobile devices.

“Clearly, the mobile experience at live performances has gone well beyond waving around a mobile screen with the image of a fired up lighter,” said Joe Laszlo, senior director at IAB’s Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence. “With live entertainment seekers leveraging mobile throughout all the phases of going to a show, marketers should pay keen attention to the insights offered in this research. Investing in mobile could be the difference between a full house and a flop.”

After the lecture I attended, I saw several photos from the event posted on Facebook. Some were posted during the event, and some were uploaded afterwards. Every single one, though, positioned the venue and event in a good light. Once again, free marketing.

How do you handle mobile phone photography at your venue? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section.

(photo credit: ShutterRunner via photopin cc)

A few brave souls from IAVM’s Region 6 took a very, very rare (only one other group has ever done this!) walk up the catwalks to the top of the AT&T Stadium dome. The group began making its way to the upper level as a part of an exclusive tour offered by IAVM colleagues at AT&T Stadium, the gracious host of the Region 6 Meeting Closing Reception.

Before climbing the dome, the tour ventured out onto the roof. Spectacular views of the nearby ballpark, rumors of a sunbathing celebrity, and a bonus peek at the HVAC system and the tops of the elevator shafts made the tour exceptionally geeky fantastic for this crowd of venue professionals.

Access to the roof began with a climb to the last row of seats, where we passed through the service doorway and onto a staircase leading up to the dome catwalks.

Once we had walked around the edge of the dome to the 50-yard-line, a new catwalk launched up the spine of the ceiling and began a steep ascent up toward the retractable roof. The transition from a flat surface to the steep grade of this catwalk was significant, and it was at this point that almost everyone tightened their grip on the handrails.

The end of the climb brought us 382-feet over the floor, providing a breathtaking view of AT&T Stadium and a memorable reward to everyone on the tour! A huge thanks to Paul Turner, CFE, and the team at AT&T Stadium for providing this fantastic end to the Region 6 Meeting.