It’s that time again! Every four years, we are treated to feats of athleticism that this world rarely gets to see. The Summer Olympics are upon us once again, except this time, they bring with them a whole new world. Last time they came around fans, in 2008, fans were no where near as connected as they are today. The iPhone had only been out for a year and Facebook had a tenth of the users it has today.
Twitter also has experienced a rapid growth increase in the time since the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Back then users were sending 100 million tweets per quarter, or roughly 13 tweets per second. Now, compare that to the 2012, where 340 million tweets are being sent daily and roughly 3,900 tweets per second on average and it is pretty clear that social media in 2008 cannot hold a candle to its influence today.
However, social media isn’t the only thing changing in the Olympics. Fans want a more interactive in-game experience, especially at the Olympics where most fans are going to be seeing more than one sport during their visit. Technology is evolving to a point where you no longer have to be restricted to just watching the event you are attending. Let me paint you the picture.
It is 2016 and you are going to the men’s and women’s swimming finals from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Before you enter the stadium you make sure that you put on your Google Glasses and check in at the aquatic center. It just so happens that several of your friends are also attending the finals, they see your check in and decide it would be a great idea to sit together. While video chatting in a Google Hangout, you pull up the Pogoseat app on your smartphone, find multiple seats together, and upgrade your seats before the action starts.
In between races one of your friends decides they want to see how the U.S. is doing in the gymnastics final. In 2012 you would be able to do this to an extent, but only by following twitter and maybe an Olympic app for updates. Not so in 2016! Your AR glasses allow you to pop up as many personal viewing screens as you wish to follow the other events. Something like picture in picture for your entire life.
This may seem far fetched to some, but the technologies that will enable these features are already being released. In the not so distant future fans will be able to put on their Google Glasses and analyze every bit of information about Usain Bolt. Or snap a picture and instantly get the latest on how Michael Phelps just did in his relay! All of these things are designed to help you have a greater in-game and in-event experience. This is the future technologies like Pogoseat are bringing about, and its just around the corner.
As you continue to watch the Olympics over the next few weeks, do so with some questions in mind. What would I want to see in my personal heads up display? How else do you think technology will upgrade your in-game experience over the next few years? Tweet or facebook us your thoughts and we will retweet the best ones!
Thumbnail image via Wikipedia.org
Thumbnail image via Google