Technology

Kyle Ramos

Talking and listening to fans are important aspects for NBA teams, and now the Kings will be the first in the NBA to take those components to the next technological level.

Taylor Soper of GeekWire recently reported that the Kings have partnered with a startup organization called JiffyBots to incorporate their chatbot technology to communicate with fans about Golden 1 Center.

According to Soper, these chatbots use “artificial intelligence and natural language processing to understand what people need and want.”

These bots will interact with fans to provide them with various information about the new downtown arena.

The NBA just recently launched a chatbot feature through Facebook’s Messenger application to create an easy way for fans to view highlights during the NBA Finals.

Additional organizations such as Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have also begun developing similar applications with chatbot technology, Soper noted.

“It’s about personalizing the fan experience and strengthening that bond,” Kings Chief Technology Officer Ryan Montoya told GeekWire.

The chatbots will be implemented leading up to the 2016-17 season, beginning with providing updates via Facebook Messanger about the soon-to-be-opened Golden 1 Center.

“Throughout the entire process designing this arena, we’ve always thought about how we remove friction and barriers from the fan experience,” Montoya said to GeekWire. “With the bot, we’re able to do that with efficient conversations with fans.”

To read the full article from GeekWire, click here.

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Kings to Become First NBA Team to Utilize Chatbots

Katie Cracchiolo

“Ryan Montoya’s task is clear, straightforward and possibly, well, impossible,” wrote Kevin McKenna of Comstock’s Magazine, “Turn the Sacramento Kings into the most technologically adept sports franchise in the world."

Montoya collaborates directly with the ownership group to ensure the team is making strides to deliver “a quality fan experience, cutting-edge player evaluations and a host of other ways to integrate the NBA into the digital world.”

“I work for the smartest tech guys in the world,” Montoya states. With a tech-minded leadership group already in place Montoya says it’s easy to continue to attract the best of the best, noting the recent hiring of NBA analytics pro Dean Oliver to assist with player performance.

In the article, Montoya also shares that he and his technology team throw around new ideas every day. Many of which don’t make it pass the testing stage, but trying out every idea “allows for the occasional breakthrough.”

“The Kings were the first U.S. professional sports team to invite players and fans to try out Google Glass wearable technology, to accept the digital currency Bitcoin for purchases and to allow camera-laden drones to zip around the arena,” adds McKenna. Following each of these “firsts” Montoya found himself answering calls from other professional teams, providing insight into how the organization made it all happen.

"The attention gained worldwide has served to seal the Kings’ reputation as the organization where high-tech happens," continues McKenna. Though construction for the new Entertainment and Sports Center (ESC) is still in progress, it doesn’t stop the Kings from trying out new tech toys.

Using the unique view provided by drones and virtual and augmented reality the franchise is able to showcase construction progress made in real time, and also highlight the flare this new ESC will bring to Sacramento.

Experiments aside, Montoya concludes that the purpose of all this technology is to provide the fans with the best, most "seamless" possible in-arena experience.

“You can do all the analytics, use fast data, but if a fan has a great experience, that is the best information to have.”

Read Complete Article: Create The Future. Now.

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Kings Utilizing the Best in Tech

Kings President Chris Granger discusses the Kings new business venture and more in an interview with Cory Johnson at the Bloomberg Sports Summit.

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Chris Granger on Bloomberg Sports Summit Podcast

sacjwise

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Drone Visits XC and ESC Site

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Sacramento Kings today announced the use of the Gimbal™ mobile engagement platform from Qualcomm Retail Solutions, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, to further enhance the fan experience via offers and communications to fans based on location and activity.Through the Sacramento Kings App, fans will receive highly relevant offers and communications delivered to their iPhone using Gimbal proximity beacons with Apple’s iBeacon technology. Gimbal beacons will be positioned throughout the arena delivering a whole new level of micro-awareness for fans.

“Creating the best fan experience is paramount,” said Kings President Chris Granger. “Like many major franchises, we have a loyalty program for our fans, but what we are doing with the Gimbal platform leverages technology to take the relationship between the Kings and our fans to a whole new level.”

Gimbal provides a comprehensive mobile context aware platform the Kings are using to engage fans through the combination of physical location, activity, time and personal interest as a major enhancement to its loyalty program. The Gimbal platform capabilities include:

“No one is more motivated to engage with a brand than dedicated sports fans with a deep connection to their teams,” said Rocco Fabiano, president, Qualcomm Retail Solutions. “Gimbal provides the very latest in mobile context awareness and proximity technology to enable sports franchises to deliver a premium sports venue experience – and the Sacramento Kings are at the forefront in leveraging mobile technology to increase fan loyalty.”

The Kings and Qualcomm Retail Solutions are working closely together with TIBCO, the Kings’ loyalty platform developer, on the Gimbal implementation. Proximity beacons have already been installed throughout the Sleep Train Arena and fans with the Sacramento Kings iPhone App receive special offers at the Kings store and have been given the opportunity to meet members of the team based on proximity. Future plans include special concession offers during games, ticket deals and special offers from Kings’ partners when fans are out and about in the Sacramento area.

“A central element of our NBA 3.0 philosophy is to use cutting-edge technologies, like Gimbal, to enhance and reward passionate Kings fans,” said Granger. “We are constantly on the lookout for the latest technological breakthroughs to help connect fans and the team. In this quest, taking the best advantage of mobile is job one and Gimbal is a great solution for real-time mobile fan engagement.”

The Sacramento Kings App is available for free from the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch or via the following: http://bit.ly/KingsAppAS.

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Sacramento Kings Implementing Cutting-Edge Technology to Enhance the Fan Experience

Kings Rocket Department

SACRAMENTO, Calif.  Today, the Sacramento Kings announced they have teamed up with Silicon Valley software company CrowdOptic to broadcast Google Glass views live during home games on the jumbotron inside Sleep Train Arena, making the team the first in professional sports to employ the technology.

The first Google Glass broadcast will be shown during the Kings’ upcoming home game against the Indiana Pacers on January 24. The Kings tested the technology during a home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 12, and released a video preview through social media.

The technology will allow fans at the game, and viewing at home, to witness the courtside experience through the eyes of Slamson, Kings dancers, sideline reporters and others closest to the action live as they stream their first-person views through Google Glass. The Glass broadcasts are the latest new technology feature the Kings are testing to improve the in-arena experience for fans.

The experience will be powered by CrowdOptic, a software platform which analyzes the real-time Google Glass feeds and curates them by their subject matter and quality, exporting only the highest quality live footage to the arena scoreboard.

Since CrowdOptic analyzes where mobile and wearable devices are aimed from moment to moment, it is also capable of powering additional technologically-enhanced services in the future for the Kings, ranging from enhancements to its mobile app for stadium services and concessions, to broadcasting controlled by fans through their mobile devices.

Kings President Chris Granger describes a vision of the near future in which a partnership with CrowdOptic will be leveraged to detect where fans smart devices, including Google Glass units worn by fans as well as phones, are aiming inside the arena. “Fans could simply aim their smart devices to inherit someone else’s Google Glass view, or evaluate concessions lines. It is just a matter of time before Google Glass is an integral part of the fan experience of watching live sports. We are very excited about the many future possibilities working with CrowdOptic.”

To learn more about CrowdOptic, visit www.crowdoptic.com

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Sacramento Kings Become First Professional Sports Team to Stream Live via Google Glass

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, the Sacramento Kings announced they will become the first major professional sports franchise to accept Bitcoin, a popular online currency. The bitcoin purchases will be processed through BitPay – the world’s largest payment processor for virtual currencies.

Since purchasing the Kings earlier this year, majority team owner Vivek Ranadivé has directed a business philosophy coined "NBA 3.0," which focuses on investments in technology, globalization and deep community partnerships. The BitPay relationship marks another manifestation of the 3.0 philosophy in Sacramento.

Tapping into a new and innovative digital currency community in which bitcoins can be earned and saved by users across the globe, the Kings have begun to accept bitcoins in the Kings Team Store through a simple checkout process, and will offer fans the ability to pay online for team merchandise and tickets by March 1. With this technology provided by BitPay, Kings fans will be able to purchase Kings merchandise and experiences in a faster and more secure way using bitcoin.

“We are maniacally focused on creating the most seamless experience for our fans in all facets,” said Ranadivé. “With BitPay, we are able to implement a technology that allows our fans to make Kings-related purchases without physically reaching into their wallets. A major tenet of the NBA 3.0 philosophy is about utilizing technology for the betterment of the fan experience, and this is yet another step in that process.”

BitPay’s Bitcoin Payment Gateway API is the most advanced and most reliable bitcoin-processing platform, both key reasons the Kings chose to partner with BitPay.

“We make it easy for businesses like the Sacramento Kings to accept bitcoin as a form of payment both in-person and online,” said Tony Gallippi, co-founder and CEO of BitPay. “As the first professional sports team to accept bitcoin, the Sacramento Kings continue to show that they are at the intersection of sports and technology.”

BitPay is a Payment Service Provider (PSP) specializing in eCommerce, B2B, and enterprise solutions for virtual currencies. Visit https://bitpay.com.