How new technologies are changing the way people consume (and bet) on sport

The way people interact and enjoy sport is changing. This Christmas, millions of people around the world will be unwrapping a new generation of exciting new devices which change the way they interact with sporting events forever. Gadgets like the iPad, games consoles, set top boxes and smartphones are connecting audiences whilst they watch sport, and are providing opportunities for advertisers and event organisers to create engaging new experiences.

2011 will continue to see a slew of product launches and new applications which will give consumers even more options for interacting with sport. So what do these shifts in consumer behaviour mean for decision makers in the sporting world?

 

"2011 is set to be a watershed year for technology and sport. With fans seemingly in charge of how sport is packaged, distributed and even governed, the sporting world needs to adapt quickly"

 

As co-founder of Smarkets, a social betting exchange that’s looking to revamp the online betting industry with a platform designed for the ‘Facebook generation’, I’ve been thinking for a while about how recent advances in technology and social networking are changing not only the way people bet online, but also the very nature of sport itself.

I founded Smarkets back in 2008 with my co-founder Hunter Morris. At the time we set ourselves the mission of creating a ‘next generation’ betting platform that would make use of recent technological advances, but first we had to figure out what that actually meant. In today’s online climate, things move fast, and over the last two and a half years we’ve had to constantly adapt to shifting behaviour online. However a few core themes have remained at the front of minds which the sports industry as a whole must also consider over the next few years to keep fans engaged. I call them the Three Ds.

The first ‘D’ is data. In today’s world, data is the lifeblood of rich online experiences. Companies, websites and even governments are opening up their data so that developers can create new ways of interacting with a service through websites and applications.

In sport, the potential to share data online is huge, and is going to be increasingly important as fans look for more ways to follow their heroes in minute detail. A great example of how data can be used in an exciting way is Picklive, a London based company that allows an audience to play fantasy football in real time whilst a match is unfolding, and at Smarkets we also use live score data to keep our members up to speed with how an event is unfolding. The opening up of sports data will help companies like ourselves to build next generation experiences that keep fans engaged and up to date in ways that have never been possible before.  

The second ‘D’ is dialogue. Increasingly, sport is becoming a two-way experience. More and more, fans now have access to platforms such as Twitter that allow them to interact directly with the athletes and event organisers. Likewise, those at the head of sporting organisations have more opportunities than ever to connect with fans in an open and human way. This dialogue is creating new opportunities to canvas opinion from fans - one recent example has been the F1 Fans Forum that saw team managers and insiders from the sport get together to discuss suggestions from fans to improve the F1 spectacle. Fans are literally shaping how the business of sport is operated.

This doesn’t always result in a positive outcome however. That’s why my third ‘D’ is for disruption. The technological revolution that’s underway is on the whole a massively positive phenomenon, but it’s also forcing organisers to carefully think how to manage their sports. Two incidents during the summer point out this problem: England’s disallowed goal during the World Cup, and the now infamous messages between Ferrari and Felipe Massa during the German Grand Prix in July. Both incidents saw unprecedented backlash from fans who felt cheated and who angrily voiced their opinions across numerous social networks. The extent of the backlash forced both FIFA and the FIA respectively to release statements promising to investigate the incidents.  

These two incidents are likely to be the first of many occasions where ‘game changing technology’ takes on a literal meaning, and can have a direct impact on the way sport is run.

2011 is set to be a watershed year for technology and sport. With fans seemingly in charge of how sport is packaged, distributed and even governed, the sporting world needs to adapt quickly. My advice? Listen to the public, be prepared to incorporate their feedback, and don’t be afraid to experiment. After all, it’s never been easier (or cheaper) to reach new audiences.

Jason Trost is co-founder of Smarkets, a social online betting exchange based in Clerkenwell, London. Prior to founding Smarkets, Jason was an application developer at UBS’s Global Asset Management (New York) and an Equities trader at Great Point Capital (Chicago). A serial entrepreneur, Jason also previously founded internet startup Descipher, a consumer medical website, and advises technology startups in the London area.