Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) has already established itself in the corporate and home office area and is quickly making its presence within the domestic scene. The home of the future is deemed wireless (Smith 2004) as this technology continues to improve, though some say it will be due to various technologies, not just one. Major players in the development of wireless technologies, including companies like Intel are convinced that the home setting will be cable free, and are working to accommodate the growing market. Consumers will be able to stream audio and video from a home server to a digital media adapter attached to a high-definition television (Smith 2004). Wifi receivers are now found in televisions, stereos, digital cameras and gaming consoles. Progression of wireless technology is also dependent on the development of software to support it. This development has seen recently, with computers running Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system beginning to switch to Microsoft’s Windows XP Media Center, which is tailored for the wireless home. Users can access media on their PC’s via remote control. Microsoft is also releasing ‘media extenders’ that will enable users to beam the same content to televisions and stereos that are equipped to use WiFi (Reed 2004). Wifi entertainment however, is not restricted to the home. Car stereos are now available to receive music from a home computer via Wifi. The car stereo has a hard drive that can store thousands of songs in MP3 and Windows Media formats, and a digital music server that enables the transfer from home to car (Reed 2004).
Wifi is now found in arenas and stadiums and is changing the way we experience live entertainment. Whilst this trend is reality for many American sporting venues, the success will lead to other nations adopting Wifi into their development strategies. The use of WiFi in stadiums is intended for fans to be able to check game score, game statistics or place orders for food and beverages. SBC Park, home to the San Francisco Giants baseball team has free wireless access to the internet and the ‘digital dugout’, a park-only web-site that offers game statistics, game highlights and interactive games (San Francisco Giants 2004). However, the use of wireless connectivity is thought to interfere with the whole concept of a live game, where fans create atmosphere by becoming involved in the game by vocally supporting their team (Lee 2004). If fans are logging on during a game they may miss the most significant plays of the game. WiFi will instead be used by coaches to keep track of plays, calls that are made and gaming statistics. Other staff members will also benefit, waiters can take food and beverage orders and credit card payments from fans in premium seats by using handheld devices to beam the information via an encrypted connection (Lee 2004). WiFi connections will be helpful for preparation and use at those events held at stadiums and arenas that are not sports related.
Lee, D 2004, ‘Professional teams explore fans’ best uses for WiFi in stadiums’, Knight Ridder Tribune Business News, October, p. 1.
Reed, K 2004, ‘Home WiFi Setups Handle music and movies..’, Boston Globe, July, p. 5.
San Francisco Giants <http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/sf/ballpark/wifi.jsp>
Smith, B 2004,’Wireless Key to home of the future’, Wireless Week, vol. 10, September, p. 20.
Jillian Hodgson 09:52, 29 Oct 2004 (EST)
