Egraphs Can Give You More than Your Favorite Athlete's Signature
(SPORTS TECHNOLOGY)
The Apple (News 
- Alert) iPad has a myriad of different uses. Games, tracking finances and surfing the Web can all be done on one device. Because of its versatility and mobility the iPad has led to the birth of the popular tablet market in a big way and controls that market with an iron fist.
Of all the things that people can do with the iPad, signing autographs probably wasn’t on the top 500, until now. Egraphs has found a way to collect digital autographs of some of the game’s greatest players, and the digital version of baseball card collecting just might catch on in a big way.
Egraphs is a company that was put together by an executive from the Tampa Bay Rays and has the backing of the Tampa Bay Rays owner. The premise is fairly simple: An autograph hunter pays $50 to Egraphs and in return they receive a high-resolution photograph signed by the player or manager the customer wants. The image will have a short, personalized note and include a personalized voice recording that can be as long as 30 seconds.
The photo, signature and recording are all sent to the customer’s digital device, whether it’s an iPad, an Android (News - Alert) tablet or even their home computer. The player or manager uses their own iPad to put the package together.
Egraphs says they have more than 100 athletes, managers and coaches signed up for the program but is rolling out the different players on a time table, with some of the biggest stars in their stable offered first. It is possible that the company will be putting together more of their iPad Egraphs once demand has picked up, assuming that demand does so.
The idea certainly seems like one that digital enthusiast could certainly embrace. Three-time all-star Tampa Bay Rays pitcher David Price, one of the players the company has brought on board, is excited about the idea.
“You could call an egraph a ‘next-generation’ version of an autograph – but it’s really so much more because I get to hear directly from fans and then create fun written and voice messages for them,” he said. “Plus, with Egraphs, it doesn’t matter if I’m on the road with the team or the fan is in a small town in Tennessee; we can connect easily from anywhere.”
Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2012, taking place Oct. 2-5, in Austin, TX. ITEXPO (News - Alert) offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It's also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. For more information on registering for ITEXPO click here.
Stay in touch with everything happening at ITEXPO. Follow us on Twitter.
