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NY Giants, Jets bring replays to in-stadium fans

The New York Giants and Jets will soon offer replays, statistics, and live feeds of other games to fans at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

Don Reisinger
CNET contributor Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has covered everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Besides his work with CNET, Don's work has been featured in a variety of other publications including PC World and a host of Ziff-Davis publications.
Don Reisinger
2 min read
The New Meadowlands Stadium.
The New Meadowlands Stadium New Meadowlands Stadium

Football fans who want instant replays while attending games at the New Meadowlands Stadium will get their wish.

According to a New York Times report, New York Giants and New York Jets fans attending a home game will be able to download a free smartphone app that will allow them to watch instant replays, see statistics, and even view live feeds of other games. Fans will also get real-time updates on which concession lines are the shortest and receive traffic updates.

As nice as that sounds, there is one catch: the app will only work inside the New Meadowlands Stadium. As soon as the fan leaves, the app will direct them to the respective home team's Web page. The Times story doesn't say which smartphone platforms will work with the app.

Fans who don't have a smartphone will not be left out. According to the Times, 2,200 video screens have been installed at the stadium and those screens will have feeds exclusive to the stadium.

Although the New Meadowlands Stadium has 82,500 seats and 16 regular season professional games will be played there during the season (eight hosted by the Giants and eight hosted by the Jets), Peter Brickman, the New Meadowlands Stadium chief technology officer, told the Times that he expects "7,000 to 10,000 fans" to use the application this season. To accommodate those people, the stadium has added 500 Wi-Fi antennas to ensure connections aren't dropped mid-game.

As a sports fan, I couldn't be happier to hear that the New Meadowlands Stadium is making technology a bigger part of the fan's experience. There is nothing worse than being at a sporting event and not being able to see a replay of an important play. Plus, with live feeds of other games, it would be nice to check on the top rivals toward the end of the season to see who will get that last playoff berth.