First we had Foxtel’s ‘Alert Shirt’, then came the Atlanta Falcons in stadium ‘Rumble Seats’ and now the NHL’s San Jose Sharks ‘Shake My Couch’.
Just feel the hockey pain….from the comfort of your home settee!
The Sharks are partnering with Comcast SportsNet California and The Guitammer Company on a new pilot programme to bring the physical feel of the hockey action to your sofa.
All Sharks 2014-15 games at their San Jose hometown SAP Centre are telecast by Comcast SportsNet California who will utilise Guitammer’s ‘4D Sports’ technology to ensure domestically-connected fans genuinely feel the bone jarring and bruising impact of the live on-ice, in-game action while watching from the comfort (well, not that much comfort) of their own home.
The system uses sensors attached to rink boards to capture the impact of players crashing into the boards and this collision power is synched with the digital telecast and wirelessly sent to the in-home sensor in the ButtKicker Kit.
Surely that’s made up?
The Buttkicker, which attaches to the bottom of a fan’s couch/chair, is, apparently, an over-sized rumble pack that vibrates the seat according to the sound patterns and it is available online via Amazon.com and at www.shakemycouch.com for around around $299.95.
Thus enabling fans at home to feel like they are sitting right on the unbreakable glass boards in the arena itself.
Guitammer’s ‘4D Sports’ system debuted at SAP Centre during the Sharks-Florida Panthers game in late November.
‘Our goal is always to bring fans closer to the action, and what better way than to allow them to actually feel what’s happening on the ice,’ says David Koppett, Senior Executive Producer, Live Events, Comcast SportsNet California.
‘Guitammer’s 4D technology helps us transmit the electric energy of a Sharks hockey game right into your living room.’
‘The Sharks are pleased to be the first NHL team to test Guitammer’s “4D” technology for their broadcasts. We think this will be an exciting and unique way for our fans to enjoy Comcast SportsNet’s coverage of Sharks hockey from the comfort of their homes,’ adds Sharks COO John Tortora.
Comment
Whether the current appetite for wearable and in-home technology that enables fans to physically feel the live action to further enhance their experience is a passing piece of experimental fun (expensive gimmickry, or a long term need remains to be seen.
While the Sharks, a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) who play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference and were founded as an expansion team in 1991, become the first of the big US sport league’s to adopt the system, last year Guitammer teamed up with the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) to give a similar feel of excitement to at-home ESPN2 viewers.
Will more sports property owners, perhaps in tandem with sponsors and broadcast partners jump on board (or rather get underneath the sofa)?
Or for that matter media and creative companies, as it seems the Buttkicker can also be used with movies and video games too.
Links
ShakeMyCouch Website
Guitammer Website
San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks Twitter
@SanJoseSharks
Comcast SportsNet California Website
Comcast SportsNet California Twitter
