Harris InfoCaster driving new hockey video network

Canucks Sports and Entertainment, owner of professional hockey franchise the Vancouver Canucks, has deployed an extensive sports video network throughout the team’s home venue based on Harris Broadcast’s InfoCaster digital signage technology.

Replacing static, backlist signage displays, InfoCaster enables fans to see a wide variety of videos, photos and other visual elements from the moment they arrive. In total, InfoCaster delivers video content to more than 450 digital displays strategically placed throughout Rogers Arena, including entranceways, upper and lower concourses, concession areas and restrooms. Fans can see many concourse banners featuring eye-catching 48:9 cinematic video — such as player profiles — spanning three landscape-oriented HD displays positioned side-by-side at intervals overhead. Displays include welcome screens, digital menu boards, three-screen advertising boards and community boards.

InfoCaster allows content to be used in a variety of ways. For example, prior to the game video material spans the entire three-screen concourse banner, but during the match itself content appears only on the first and third screens while the middle display shows the game itself. Menus can be changed on over one hundred concession area displays, and player profiles and fan photos are updated on a regular basis.

Karl Pedersen, digital media technician with Canuck Sports and Entertainment, comments: “We have a massive library of HD video, stills and animated graphics that we need to schedule and deliver in a precise, synchronised sequence across designated screen sets, and this content is scheduled according to different programming blocks such as pre-game, in-game, intermission and post-game. Without such sophisticated, application-specific software integrated with the hardware, it would be very labor-intensive and daunting to deliver such a spectacular digital signage experience.”

The InfoCaster installation at Rogers Arena consists of several components including InfoCaster Creator, which has a wide array of tools and templates for the design, authoring and creation process; and InfoCaster Manager for remote network management and control of numerous InfoCaster Player devices. InfoCaster software manages the scheduling process, automating ad and promotional content placements across groups of displays to target specific audiences.