Biometrics are no longer the stuff of Minority Report. You probably use biometric identifiers, such as fingerprint recognition or iris scanning, every day on your smartphone or computer.
As the COVID-19 pandemic ended, sports venues are implementing facial verification and other technology to expedite entry and help fans avoid lineups. Here’s how they’re doing it.
Face Verification
Face verification, based on machine learning, helps companies confirm the identity of new and existing users with high accuracy. The technology can capture and analyse a person’s facial features, such as the spacing between the eyes, the bridge of the nose, and the contour of the lips. These biometric features are compared with those stored in the system and validated to confirm the person’s identity. Face recognition is a more robust authentication solution than traditional methods, such as PIN codes and swipe cards, which are susceptible to fraud and account takeover.
During the pandemic, stadiums and event venues used facial recognition to ensure that fans did not bring in people with potential risks like flu or other illnesses. The Ghelamco Arena in Belgium, for example, is conducting a trial of a biometric entry system that utilizes palm vein authentication through Perfect-ID’s Palmki platform to allow fans to enter the stadium without showing their physical ID card or ticket.
Other uses of facial recognition include age verification for concession payments at stadiums. The Cleveland Browns, for example, use Wicket’s facial ticketing to let fans purchase drinks at stadium concession stands with their smartphones by uploading a selfie and government ID to the team’s mobile app. The app then scans the fan’s face to verify their age before a server hands them their beverage.
Ticket Activation
In a baseball stadium, the fictional Ray Kinsella believed that “if you build it, they will come.” While that mantra is a good start, modern teams need to do much more to attract new fans and keep existing ones coming back. While a solid core of attributes such as seating sections for specific groups, AR/VR experiences, improved wireless access and customized mobile content are likely to increase satisfaction marginally, the key to increasing fan loyalty is providing unique experience differentiators.
One way to do this is by integrating face recognition technology with ticketing. For example, a team can use facial recognition software to authenticate tickets purchased online through an app. This allows fans to bypass the box office and go straight to their seat in a matter of seconds.
Another approach is to integrate a facial recognition solution with an existing fan engagement tool like an app or chatbot. For instance, the Houston Astros have added a ticket commerce functionality to their AI chatbot, enabling fans to purchase single-game tickets directly from a digital conversation.
Facial recognition can also be used to create new experiences and gamification in the stadium, such as an app like 15 Seconds of Fame that uses facial recognition to ensure that fans at sporting events save the moments in which they appear on in-stadium jumbotrons or game broadcasts. The Browns have partnered with biometric security company IDmission to provide digital age verification for alcohol purchases using Wicket, a mobile app that lets fans upload a selfie and government ID to confirm they are over 21 before ordering from any of 14 drink stations at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Access Control
The fan of today demands more than just a good game. He also wants a great experience, including the opportunity to eat and drink, and enjoy an exciting atmosphere. To meet these expectations, stadiums must adopt innovative solutions for a better fan journey.
One of the most effective innovations is facial access systems, which streamline entry and offer a reliable method for identifying fans while bolstering stadium security measures. These systems are built with privacy by design and compliance with data protection laws, ensuring that personal information won’t be used for any other purpose. Moreover, the images captured during the verification process are converted into biometric vectors that cannot be reverse-engineered or stolen, providing further safety and security for users.
Another way to improve the fan experience is with indoor positioning systems that use a variety of sensors to accurately track and identify individual spectators. This allows stadiums to provide real-time updates and personalized interactions to their attendees, such as guiding them to restrooms and concession lines. It also enables organizers to deliver exclusive offers and promotions, which increases both fan engagement and revenues. As a result, stadiums are transforming into interactive data-collecting entertainment temples that offer an unmatched fan experience. This is because the ultimate goal of any stadium or event is to attract, retain, and engage committed fans, who drive the bulk of revenue streams.
Payment
As the COVID-related limitations on attendance continue to be lifted and fans return to stadiums, rights holders will be looking for better ways to entice them back with compelling reasons to visit. That means focusing less on making steep ticket prices seem more palatable, and more on offering premium experiences that can’t be replicated in their homes or pubs.
That’s why more and more stadiums are adopting tech solutions that deliver a fan-first experience, with cashless concessions and in seat delivery allowing fans to order food and drinks from their mobile app. Using analytics, these apps can also monitor queue length at each concession stand and automatically update digital wayfinding to let fans know that the wait is shorter at a different stand around the corner.
Then there are the data-collecting in-stadia services that provide valuable insights about fans and their behavior to help rights holders drive additional value in-stadium ecommerce and second screen content. For example, an N3XT client’s in-venue app allows Spurs fans to purchase food and merchandise directly from their smartphone while a branded mobile payment system integrated into the team’s fan app lets Spurs fans use the same payment platform to make purchases inside the stadium itself. This not only drives more sales but also helps create a more personalized fan experience. This enables rights holders to identify and reward their most valuable fans, driving retention and ultimately increasing revenue.