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stem in sports: technology
square feet larger in area. The owners of the
stadium claimed to not only be aiming for the
record, but also working to keep fans in the
seats. With the increasing quality of home HD
TV, sports owners worry that the in-home ex-
perience is becoming too good. By creating a
way to enjoy both the HD quality of
video and the in-person thrill of live
action, places such as the Speedway
hope to lure in more fans.
“The way to address [declining at-
tendance] is by putting in a screen
that, by comparison, is bigger than
the ones you have at home, better
than the ones you have at home, and
you get the live feel, too,” said Tex-
as Motor Speedway president Eddie
Gossage.
Cameras That Fly?
F
ans of
the
NFL
are
used
to
seeing angles
that
normally only birds can see. Most NFL
stadiums are equippedwithwires strung
throughout the stadium on which a “SkyCam”
zooms above the field. An operator sends the
camera zipping along the wires to follow the
action, or to stay out of the way. SkyCam has
to be behind a kickoff, for instance, and can’t
be above the field during a punt. But by pro-
viding this birds-eye view, SkyCam has really
changed how fans see their favorite sport.
Look! Up in the sky!
It’s a flying camera!
Well, not flying, but
this wire-guided
SkyCam gives TV
viewers new and
unique angles.