Do you really need to use your smartphone in a stadium or arena? ‘We in the sports business don’t sell the game, we sell unique, emotional experiences. We are not in the business of selling...

Do you really need to use your smartphone in a stadium or arena? ‘We in the sports business don’t sell the game, we sell unique, emotional experiences. We are not in the business of selling basketball. We are in the business of selling fun. We are in the business of letting you escape. We are in the business of giving you a chance to create shared experiences. . . . I want it to be very participatory. I want it to be very social. I want it to be very inclusive. I want it to be memorable. I want it to be so much fun people talk about it to their friends and can’t wait to go back. I want every parent to get tears in their eyes when they see their kids jumping up and down whether the score is 2 to 0, or 120 to 84. When they are chanting Lets Go Mavs. When they are dancing and trying to get on the jumbotron. Video and music are two simple components of what we do. We are developing games that our fans can participate in at the arena that hopefully engage them with what is happening on the court. We are coming up with ways to reward our fans for being our ‘6th man’ and adding energy to the arena. (I will save those for another post). We are looking for ways to enhance the emotional attachments created at our game. ‘I can’t think of a bigger mistake then trying to integrate smartphones just because you can. The last thing I want is someone looking down at their phone to see a replay. The last thing I want is someone thinking that it’s a good idea to disconnect from the unique elements of a game to look at replays or update their fantasy standings or concentrate on trying to predict what will happen next in the game. There is a huge value to everyone collectively holding their breath during a replay, or responding to a great play or a missed call and then spontaneously reacting to what they see. You lose that if people are looking down at their handhelds. The fan experience is about looking up, not looking down. If you let them look down, they might as well stay at home, the screen is always going to be better there.’ Source: Mark Cuban: blogmaverick.com, ‘The fan experience at sporting events – We dont need no stinking smartphones!’, 24 December 2011. Discussion questions 8 Do you think that a matchday experience could be – at the same time – online and offline? 9 Try to think of a sports team app which could be used in a stadium or arena.