The last time California's Bay Area hosted the Super Bowl was 1985. Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers beat the Miami Dolphins, 38-16.
Back then, Ronald Reagan conducted the coin toss via a grainy satellite feed.
Fast forward 31 years, and Germany, Sat.1 will be airing the event online. We have something called 4G that carries super fast data transfer to these little computers in our pockets. And therefore, mobile rules.
"Almost everybody at the Super Bowl will be using some sort of mobile device," said Al Guido, chief operating officer for the 49ers. "They're going to be looking at game statistics, their social networks, sharing photos and other content. We have the high-tech infrastructure to handle it."
YouTube found that 60% of Super Bowl TV viewers also have a smartphone in their hand while watching the game, a number that goes way higher for millennials--some 84% who watch the show with one eye on the TV and the other on the smartphone.
It doesn't matter that the game itself takes place 45 miles south in Santa Clara, the technological mecca of the world, San Francisco, has embraced the opportunity, hosting the Super Bowl to the tune of $5 million. In all, the Super Bowl host committee raised more than $50 million from corporate sponsors to build out this high-tech Super Bowl experience, according to Cnet.
It's a sound investment. Certainly Silicon Valley will reap hefty rewards via hotel folios and local chain restaurants, but the city of San Francisco is poised to see the larger ROI from everything that's made this the most technologically advanced Super Bowl in history. Indeed, Super Bowl 50 is projected to trump last year's 114.4 million tv set viewers, to 190 million.
The city is ready. Ready to do what the city of Palo Alto couldn't decades ago. Part of it is preparedness, but the larger part is technical prowess. Let's put into perspective 30 years later with this Visage graphic.
Presented by Verizon, San Francisco's Super Bowl City advertises to "showcase the best the Bay Area has to offer, with interactive games and activities that highlight the region's technological prowess, culinary excellence and cultural diversity, as well as celebrate the 50th Super Bowl and the Bay Area's place in professional football history."
The Fan Energy Zone powered by SAP is centered in the heart of Super Bowl City and will showcase the latest in interactive gaming, social media and data visualizations. It features a taste of virtual reality with a "Quarterback Challenge" allowing fans to wear a headset and experience being in a simulated football game. Augmented reality and virtual reality vendors may see this help spike the AV/VR market forecasted to reach $120B by 2020.
Software company Intuit, created a platform called Business Connect that puts local small businesses such as sign-makers, florists, and caterers, with Super Bowl preparation efforts. For the first time, the Super Bowl 50 Host Committee and the NFL have openly sought disabled veteran and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-owned businesses in preparations of the festivities.
Even some of the most famed pre-game festivities are scaling it up a technical notch. This year's annual Maxim Super Bowl party, and 10th-year GlazerPalooza kick-off party will be live-streamed by Torio.tv. The company even has its own Roku channel.
Other cool things to see and do if you're in town include:
In all, there are ways to celebrate Super Bowl 50 in person, and from afar, in ways there weren't before. That's a win for the NFL, a win for the hosting city, and most importantly, a win for the football fan.
Spike that football right in your living room, where it belongs. Today, you are a part of the Super Bowl, and Silicon Valley welcomes you.
