Redmill

 Will we be taking our mobile phone into the stadium next soccer season? Rumour goes that organisers from sportmatches and popular concerts are discussing the possibilities of banning mobile phones inside the arenas.  

Press has made reports over the past months that all over Europe negotiations took place with only one goal: maximising profits for those who have broadcast rights. And it sure looked like the broadcast lisence prices are rocketing. This cannot continu. Those who want to broadcast specific content like soccer matches, formula 1 and large events need to make money and somebody somewhere has to pay the bill. 
Like other markets these event rights markets, making money by restricting access, take turn as they are confronted with creative peer-2-peer technology. only this time the peers are on the move!!!

What happened in the music industry where each personal computer became a music distribution point is now happening in the mobile phone industry. With the increasing bandwith and videoquality every spectator can broadcast a live registration over the internet. Sites like livecastr.com and qik.com facilitate live webcasts from your mobile phone. YouTube and other videostreaming sites allready released rumours that they will start facilitating likewise services.

Just imagine, the new sort hooligans are videohooligans. If 20.000 camera’s are videoing and webcasting the soccermatches those fancy lisence deals will drop in value. Oh yes I hear you say, they can only deliver poor quality? But that was exactly what the graphics industry told us when in 1987 DeskTop Publishing was introduced. Or what the telephone companies said when voice over IP was introduced
The interesting thing in this case is that those who want to forbid the audience bringing their mobile phone into the stadiums are also the same people that want to learn more about their customers by experimenting with e-ticketing and mobile ticketing.

This will definitely be a great match.

To be continued