Thinking out loud: When will stadium apps use voice commands?

Wouldn't it be great to have a stadium app that asked this question, out loud?

Wouldn’t it be great to have a stadium app that asked this question, out loud?

In the overall world of smartphones, voice commands and help-me services like Apple’s Siri are commonplace. So when will voice commands become part of stadium apps, a place where they could be really useful?

Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer and I bet if I asked Siri I wouldn’t get a clear reply. But as the kickoff column in what is planned as a weekly “thinking out loud” feature here, maybe the reading audience can chime in: Are voice commands coming to stadium apps anytime soon? What are the sticking points? Are there technical reasons why fans can’t use voice commands to help make the game-day experience a better one?

After spending a year really pondering how technology can help the fan situation, I now understand why most stadium apps have low usage rates: They simply aren’t addressing the main pain points of attending a live event, which primarily have to do with waiting in a line, or wasting time. Sometimes that line is in the parking lot or at the public transportation station, and sometimes it’s at a concession stand. Sometimes it’s a restroom line. Wasting time not in a line usually comes from not being able to find something, or somebody. I think voice commands could help make things easier, and would provide a real reason for fans to download and use a stadium app.

Listen to me, don’t tell me

As most of us who use smartphones know, the combination of features like voice commands and a powerful app like Google Maps is drop-dead simple and extremely helpful. I’m still amazed by the fact that I can sit in my car, tell my phone “directions to xxx address,” and then the phone will talk me through the way there, so I’m not endangering myself or others by looking at a screen while driving. (Which may be the stupidest thing a living being can do.)

Siri can answer lots of things, but she can't tell you why sports apps don't have voice commands.

Siri can answer lots of things, but she can’t tell you why sports apps don’t have voice commands.

So… why can’t that functionality be a part of a stadium app? Last year while attending multiple games I noticed that sometimes trying to type things on my smartphone was near impossible, especially when you are holding a drink in one hand. I also noticed that screens were sometimes hard to read in the bright sunlight of an outdoor event. Voice commands and voice replies could go a long way to making a stadium app more useful; I’m especially thinking about it when you combine it with a powerful action feature — like the Levi’s Stadium app’s ability to let you pre-order food and drink for express pickup or delivery — wouldn’t it be great if you could just click the talk button and say, “I’d like a hot dog and a beer,” and then have the phone ask you, “pickup or delivery?”

I’ve got a lot more ideas how voice commands could help improve a game-day experience — like using it to help me find friends who I know are at the stadium — but I’m interested in your thoughts here as well. First of all, from a technology standpoint is this idea doable? Can the resources that work for Google Maps be replicated in stadiums? What’s needed — maybe more beacons or some kind of better Wi-Fi location system? Chime in here. Since this blog isn’t yet voice-enabled, you can leave comments below or shoot me an email to kaps at mobilesportsreport.com. Like Siri, I will thank you personally if you do.

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