Leave your selfie stick at home, sports fans: A partnership between the Staples Center and San-Diego-based Fanpics will mean that Clippers and Kings fans can get pictures of themselves enjoying the game without having to worry about taking those photos themselves. (The Lakers haven't signed on yet for the service.) Fanpics is already using their technology at San Diego State University and LA Galaxy games, the LA Business Journal says. How does it work? A little creepily!
Those who'd like to can get in on the robo-selfie action by downloading the Fanpics app (free) and, when they get to Staples, entering their seat number. Twelve robotic cameras posted throughout the venue will snap reaction shots of those users any time something big or important happens. And big, important things happen a lot: "One camera operator watches each game closely, triggering all units to snap photographs at each pivotal moment. Fanpics is expected to generate over 1 million photos per game," Forbes says. And while these photos are centered on the people opting in to Fanpics, from samples on the program's Instagram, there seems to be a good chance that people around Fanpics participants will end up in a shot or two, so maybe look sharp for the game and hope you're not wanted for anything or by anyone.
Throughout the game, users will get real-time access to their pictures ("Photos are curated into a personalized photo stream within the app that is accessible anytime"), receiving the photos within 30 seconds of the time they were taken. It's not clear if that curation process weeds out the photos where attendees have closed eyes or are mid-bite on some nachos, but one would hope so. The final photos come with a little description about what had just happened, so later it's easy to explain the ecstatic/outraged/starting-to-drop-an-f-bomb face captured in the photo.
What does Staples get out of the partnership with Fanpics? The venue and the teams have access to data about who's going to games. The Staples Center's president says "the system offers significant value for ongoing communication and marketing to our guests through data from fans using the platform and sharing their Fanpics photos."
· Staples Center Cameras Eye Fans' Data [LABJ]
· STAPLES Center, AEG And Fanpics Partner To Put Fans At The Center Of Major Sports Moments [Forbes]
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