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An electronic boost to gameday experience

The NFL is all about the gameday fan experience, and there are 12 teams that offer a very unique handheld electronic device called FanVision. The device, which has a screen size of four and a half inches and a battery life of about six hours, fits in the palm of your hand. FanVision is only able to receive a signal in the radius of the stadium and the parking lot. The cost of the device is $199 at the stadium and around $259 on the www.fanvision.com website.

 

Stephen Ross, owner of the Miami Dolphins and founder of FanVision, brought in Michael Weisman -- one of the top broadcast producers in the business -- to help with the device. A winner of 15 Emmy Awards, Weisman was a producer for the Olympic Games in Seoul, nine World Series and seven Super Bowls, and he and I talked about how the device is being received.

 

Weisman on what makes FanVision so special » Good early rollout for the has been great and feedback has been super. We want to keep the fans at the stadium up to date with everything going on, both inside the building as well as around the NFL, and allow them to do it from their seats. A major key to our early success is that we have all the networks on board, so we have access to all the cameras -- allowing fans to see a number of angles that they would not otherwise see. We have live stats, so a fan can keep in touch with their fantasy teams. We have the Red Zone, so you can keep up with all the other action around the league. Fans can also watch the game broadcast as well as up to three other games, so we feel that we have really stepped up the gameday experience.

 

Weisman on the future of FanVision » Our goal is to make sure that this is successful with our NFL partners and then we look forward to expanding quickly into the NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball. [Then] fans will be able to not only take it to NFL games but also to the NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball, soccer, and just about any sporting event you can imagine. It is all about getting the full fan experience in all the venues not only in Washington but in  New York, London, Paris and wherever they travel to see a pro sporting event.

 

Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Wordmandc

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