The Broncos' new videoboard at Sports Authority Field at Mile High was unveiled Thursday during an MLL game, and the 220-foot-long, 40-foot-high board will be "the third largest in the NFL this year," according to Mike Klis of the DENVER POST. The HD LED video display is the "centerpiece" of an offseason $30M stadium improvement project that also includes "two new HD video displays above the stadium's north end zone, a nearly 1,500-foot-wide LED ribbon display along the club level facade, a new sound system and the installation of over 1,000 flat screen monitors in stadium concourses and other public spaces" (DENVERPOST.com, 7/3).
NEED TO EMPHASIZE STADIUM EXPERIENCE: In Boston, Ben Volin wrote NFL owners need to "start emphasizing what makes the stadium experience great (camaraderie, passion, and live action) and stop trying to emulate the home experience." Owners need to "understand that attending a game in many cities is now a hassle more than anything else." Putting RedZone Channel "on the stadium Jumbotron or building a fantasy football lounge isn’t going to convince most fans to leave their homes or local bars and spend $200, conservatively, on a day at the game." The answer to increasing attendance "seems simple -- lower the prices," and "not just on tickets." The fans will "show up if they feel like they are getting a deal." Instead, it "feels like they’re getting shaken down at the gates" (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/8). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio noted the "potential problem" with running RedZone Channel at stadiums is that if fans are "watching what's going on elsewhere, they inevitably will react to what's going on elsewhere." And that will "make for sounds that don't mesh with what's happening on the field." Maybe "extensive but not continuous use of RedZone is the best way to go." There will be "moments when it makes no sense to distract fans from what's happening on the field" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 7/5).
