Sports Technology & Communications News from Around the World

Anyone who has ever watched a sports game on a mobile device knows just how frustrating it can be to experience a slow signal during an important play. Seattle Seahawks fans need not worry about such SNAFUs any longer: the Seahawks have announced that their mobile app will be integrating Opanga’s NetRover technology. If Opanga can live up to its promise of enabling media-rich applications to “deliver massive amounts of data to mobile devices, without degrading network performance of the viewing experience,” Seattle football fans have a lot to be excited about.

Some sports fans and consumers may be confused as to why upgrading the quality of the video is a priority for the team; however, the CEO of Opanga Networks, Dave Gibbons, says that it is a very logical collaboration. Gibbons states that as more and more people are watching video on their Smartphones and tablets, “networks are crumbling under the traffic load and the user experience gets really sketchy.” For sports teams, this is a concern. “Sports teams like the Seahawks are extremely interested in NetRover’s innovative technology, because it protects the network performance and gives the fan perfect video quality on their mobile.”

Chip Suttles, the vice president of technology for the Seahawks, calls it an “exciting” new technology and says that the Seahawks “couldn’t be happier to provide our fans with this enhanced app that delivers a broadcast quality video experience on their mobile devices.” Gibbons promises that Seahawks fans will be just as pleased—Opanga’s NetRover technology starts instantly and never freezes.

Opanga is a Seattle-based company, so it is unclear whether other teams will jump on board, should the Seahawks find success with their video upgrade, or if they will find their own local providers of such services. It is unsurprising that a Seattle team is intent on setting the standard for mobile video quality.