For many of our venue professionals, the use of wireless microphones is a daily occurrence. Arenas, performing art centers, stadiums, convention centers, all use wireless to function. The recent changes in FCC regulations have brought into question whether there will be enough wireless bandwidth left for our venues to continue expanding programming and maintain the quality of service their patrons expect.

The bandwidth issue has its roots all the way back to the 1930’s when the Federal Communications Commission began to assign licenses for broadcast. Given the technology of the era, adjoining frequencies faced interference, so stations were separated across the dial, leaving unused bandwidth in between. These gaps were eventually filled through the use of wireless technology. Unfortunately for wireless users, when innovations like digital technology, mobile devices and broadband internet took hold, much of these open airwaves were targeted for use.

Now fast forward to 2013 and the FCC auction of the remaining bandwidth which threatened the availability for wireless networks. This August, a proposed Wireless Microphone Users Interference Protection Act was presented to Congress. The proposed act will require the Federal Communications Commission to expand eligibility for part 74 licenses to certain wireless microphone users, to establish safe haven channels for wireless microphones, and to authorize access by owners and operators of wireless microphones to the TV bands databases for the purpose of protecting wireless microphone operations from interference. The act has supporters from across the venue industry including the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, and the Recording Academy; along with many industry associations including APAP, IAEE and IAVM.

Timothy Robinson the Senior Policy Counsel & Legislative Director in the office of Congressman Bobby L. Rush has asked IAVM to share this information with our members and encourage all affected venues to lend their voice of support for the Wireless Microphone Users Interference Protection Act. If you would like to join the movement with a bipartisan group of Members on the House Energy and Commerce Committee including Representative Pitts (PA-16), Lance (NJ-07), Olson (TX-22), Bilirakis (FL-12), Engel (NY-16), Green (TX-29), and Lujan (NM-03) contact Josh Lynch at josh.lynch@mail.house.gov to find out how your venue can support this cause. Or you can weigh in directly with the FCC at http://www.fcc.gov/contact-us.

Image: Courtesy Flickr – Rick Webb

What do all of these things have in common? They are all terms a venue’s crowd management and guest services staff should understand and be able to act on if and when it becomes necessary. They are also part of what you and your team can learn more about by attending this year’s International Crowd Management Conference Nov. 10-13 in San Antonio, TX.

Your venue’s staff is the eyes and ears of your facility. They spot things that could be hazardous or suspicious behavior to help ensure a safe and pleasant venue experience. They can deflect a situation when they hear an overly intoxicated patron becoming unruly. They help develop your brand and deliver unmatched customers service when they guide a frazzled family that needs help to their seats. They are the heroes of our venues in more ways than one. For that reason, you AND your staff need to attend this conference together.

ICMC doesn’t just cover the doom and gloom of how to handle an incident. ICMC also provides venue managers guidelines for creating their own affordable and effective guest services plan, allowing customer service, crowd management, marketing, security, and front-line teams to work together to enhance your venue’s brand and increase patron loyalty and improve the bottom line.

ICMC certainly does focus on incident management and appropriate responses including understanding and predicting crowd dynamics, responding to active shooter situations, pyrotechnic safety, and first responder coordination – all of which increase successful outcomes after an incident; and provide potential justification that your venue has fulfilled its duty of care responsibilities when legal liability is being examined.

Finally, ICMC delivers attendees a network of some of the venue industry’s most successful leaders and innovators to continue your learning once the conference is over. Whether you’ve attended before or this is your first conference, ICMC is a unique opportunity to focus your team on both crowd management and customer service. We encourage you to register your team now before it’s too late.

I worked 10 years at Meeting Professionals International as an editor for The Meeting Professional before coming on board for IAVM and Facility Manager magazine. You could say that meeting and event planning blood is still coursing through my veins. So, when I saw a recent article in the New York Times about events and journalism, I got excited.

The article is about how media companies—such as The Atlantic, Cosmopolitan and The Huffington Post—are using live events and festivals to boost their bottom lines.

“Most media companies do not break out their revenue from events, so it is hard to pinpoint how profitable they are, but executives familiar with the business say there is little doubt they can be reliable moneymakers,” Leslie Kaufman reported. “A successful event can generate several million dollars in revenue, mostly from ticket sales and corporate sponsorship.”

These events aren’t just about making money, though. They’re also about extending brands and creating content to be re-purposed or sold to other media outlets.

“Interviewing specialists onstage is now called ‘live journalism,’ and conference centers are considered just another social platform with Twitter, Facebook and online video,” Kaufman reported.

I suggest you read the article, and please let us know in the comments if you’ve seen an uptick in media outlets booking your venues for events.

(Image via Flickr: David Marcel/Creative Commons)

There was a lot of industry news this past week you may have missed. Here are some headlines that caught our eyes.

At the Airport of the Future, Even the Security Check Is Self-Service
– Businessweek.com
“On Wednesday a Palo Alto (Calif.)-based startup called Qylur (pronounced KI-lure) said it would begin offering automated security checkpoints next year, after running small-scale tests of the machines in airports, sporting arenas, and elsewhere over the last few months.”

Can Technology Help Avoid Stampedes?
– BBC News
“At the Hajj pilgrimage, the world’s largest Islamic gathering, which takes place in October, the authorities now use live crowd analytics software, which can not only spot problems in the crowd but also claims to be able to predict where overcrowding is likely to happen.”

NFL Sets Stadium Wi-Fi/Cell Standards
– Sports Business Journal
“Shoddy to nonexistent Wi-Fi along with sporadic phone coverage plagues NFL stadiums and other sporting venues. These challenges become even greater as fans’ capabilities with technology continue to increase. The task for the leagues is to offer to fans in-stadium the same technological connectivity they enjoy at home.”

NASCAR Fan Death at Talladega Due to Suspected Carbon Monoxide Leak
– Bleacher Report
“The couple from Tennessee were found on Saturday at about 1 p.m., per Talladega County Coroner Larry Seals. The man was dead when authorities arrived, but the woman has been hospitalized in Birmingham, Ala., according to the report.”

4 Serie A Clubs Punished for Territorial Chants
– San Francisco Chronicle
“Both Milan clubs as well as Roma and Torino have been given a suspended sentence of having sections of their stadiums closed for one match following insulting chants by the clubs’ fans at the weekend.”

The Chiefs’ Secret Weapon: The Voters Who Upgraded Arrowhead Stadium
– The Kansas City Star
“…speaking of that stadium, the reason it’s there today in all its modern, deafening glory with expanded concourses, more concessions and extra restrooms is because of what Jackson Countians did seven years ago.”

(Image via Qylur Security Systems)

He’s done it. She’s done it. I’ve done it. You’ve done it. I’m talking about checking your smartphone during a business lunch. Or, worse, during a business meeting. Whenever and wherever you check it, though, can be considered rude, especially when done during work.

Peter Cardon, associate professor of clinical management communication at the USC Marshall’s Center for Management Communication, and Melvin Washington and Ephraim Okoro at Howard University recently released a new study showing that our use and attitudes toward smartphones break down across genders, ages, and regions and that they change over time.

“Hiring managers often cite courtesy as among the most important soft skills they notice,” Cardon said. “By focusing on civility, young people entering the workforce may be able to set themselves apart.”

Cardon and colleagues sampled more than 550 full-time employees to understand what they perceive as acceptable, courteous, or rude smartphone behavior in the workplace. They also asked employees who earned at least $30,000 a year to list behaviors that were either okay or rude.

“Not surprisingly, millennials and younger professionals were more likely to be accepting of smartphone use, but they might be doing themselves a disservice,” Cardon said. “In many situations, they rely on those older than them for their career advancement.”

Several findings were discovered. You ready for lots of bullet points? I thought so.

• 76 percent of study participants said checking texts or emails was unacceptable behavior in business meetings.
• 87 percent said answering a call was rarely or never acceptable in business meetings.
• 66 percent said writing or sending a text message is inappropriate even during an informal business lunch.
• Men were nearly twice as likely as women to consider mobile phone use acceptable at a business lunch. More than 59 percent of men said it was fine to check text messages at a power lunch, compared to 34 percent of women who thought checking texts was appropriate.
• 50 percent of men said it was acceptable to answer a call at a power lunch, compared to 26 percent of women.
• Professionals from the West Coast were less accepting of mobile phone use in meetings than people from the East Coast.
• Higher-income professionals had less tolerance for smartphone use in business meetings.
• 66 percent of people under 30 said texting or emailing was acceptable, compared to just 20 percent of those aged 51-65.
• 20 percent of professionals said simply having your phone out at a business lunch is rude.
• More than 30 percent still found saying “excuse me” to be rarely or never appropriate during informal or offsite lunch meetings.

(Image via Flickr: Maik Meid/Creative Commons)