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IKOLI VICTOR
doha
Vodafone Qatar says it has the wherewithal to deliver smart stadium experiences to support Qatar's efforts in staging an amazing 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, the first in the Middle East.
Speaking to Qatar Tribune at the World Stadium Congress in Doha on Monday, Mohammed Serieh, Head of Enterprise Marketing, corroborated Vodafone's role towards building a memorable tournament in 2022 as highlighted by Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah al Thani, Director of Enterprise Sales in his presentation.
"As Qatar's 2022 World Cup preparations accelerate so will fans' expectation for super-fast connectivity. The ability to share videos, pictures and messages with people online will be an important aspect of the fan experience and with more than a million people expected to travel to the Middle East's first World Cup, the level of connectivity and sharing will be exceptional," Sheikh Hamad said.
"Innovative technologies enabling fans to stay connected during the tournament will form a large part of delivering an unforgettable experience for those inside the 2022 venues. Through our international network and global leadership in IoT technology, we are ideally placed to provide just this and are already doing so in Turkey's smart stadium, the Vodafone Arena and in Spain's Valencia Football Club," Hamad added.
Mohammed Serieh added,"It is extremely significant that Qatar implement smart stadium technology. It is not about the smart stadium itself but the smart services around it. It is very easy to build a stadium but the real challenge is to create a fan experience that people will appreciate and smart services are about customer experience. We are not here to market but to highlight what the smart services should be".
Serieh said the concept of a smart stadium encompasses two main aspects: fan experiences and improved operations. In terms of fan experiences, a 'smart stadium' uses technologically advanced infrastructure and digital technologies to deliver greater connectivity and create unforgettable experiences for sport fans.
On the need for smart stadiums, he said:"Smart technologies can improve operational efficiency in a stadium. Also smart technology can be used to ensure safety and security on match day by monitoring to detect unruly fans."
Asked if Vodafone can outdo its main rival in Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup, he said:"The government will decide. However, our competitor in Qatar don't have one tenth of our experience in this field as Vodafone. We have done it everywhere and we have smart solutions implemented anywhere on earth and they don't have that. When it comes to delivery we have already done it as shown in my presentation, that you don't need to renovate but innovate, take what we have and implement it and it is ready in Qatar.
"Yes it's a big rivalry I agree, but we are bigger and we have experience outside which they don't have. So, whenever the government wants to launch anything we just bring it and take them to see it in action and we just replicate."
Vodafone Qatar and Vodafone Turkey recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) designed to accelerate the transfer of knowledge, expertise and technological know-how from Turkey's first smart-stadium, the Vodafone Arena in the Besiktas area of Istanbul to one of the world's fastest growing football markets in Qatar.
Describing the stadium in Istanbul, Serieh said:"The stadium is amazing. We signed an MoU last year to replicate the experience here. I am genuinely interested in people going there to see it and we are ready to facilitate anyone interested to visit there."
Visitors to Vodafone's stand at the event's exhibition were able to experience the Vodafone Arena via a virtual reality tour in addition to other advanced technologies used for large sporting events.
