THE FULL PITCH
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swing badges. You would never know they had some of the
porate boxes, with plans to install across the remainder by
most advanced AI driven technology inside them!”
end of 2021. During a typical race day, Ascot and Chargifi
There has also been a refurbishment programme in place
can see frequent use of the service for anything from 15
for Ascot Racecourse’s corporate boxes, with the venue
minutes to a few hours of charging.
having 230 boxes in total – more than any other venue in
“We’re looking at how this could be extended to the public
Europe. The likes of Bose and Samsung have played their
concourse, bars and other areas. Through our software
part in providing the audiovisual element in these boxes,
platform, we’re looking to integrate with other services
though Ascot have also looked at other more specialist are-
like Ascot’s app to deliver location-based information such
as, including rolling out wireless charging points.
as wayfinding or online services perhaps even table side
Anthony Fulgoni, EMEA Sales Director at Chargifi, gave us
ordering,” added Anthony.
some more insight into how they became involved: “We
“The Ascot IT team are very forward thinking and they
had worked with George previously on a similar installation
chose our technology as it offers more than just a conven-
at Twickenham Stadium, so once he’d moved over to Ascot,
ient source of power.”
he asked us to get involved.
Augmented Reality technology is something that has began
“This is very much part of the vision to make Ascot Race-
to be embraced within the sporting venue industry, with
course the technology leader in sports venues. We worked
clubs, brands and rights holders continuing to look for
with the Ascot Technology Department to deploy Chargifi
ways to make messages cut through, as well as create new
mobile phone charging spots in many of the hospitality
experiences for those fans and customers at the venue.
boxes. As well as that, we liaised with Ascot’s furniture
Ascot has taken the idea of Augmented Reality on board by
and installation teams to ensure our technology blended in
working with Looking Glass - an experiential marketing
with the design aesthetic in the box
technology company that markets and sells mobile app-
“The spots allow users of wireless charging capable phones
based AR solutions to tier one brands, venues and events.
- Samsung and Apple, for example - to recharge their de-
Iain Case, Director of Looking Glass, went into further
vice simply by placing it on the spot. The spot itself is ele-
detail when he spoke to MONDO | STADIA: “I have worked
gantly built into the furniture, so there’s no trailing cables,
with George on various projects over the years and, to-
unsightly plug points or a ‘lost and found’ problem.
gether, we have delivered several innovative solutions for
“Each time a user charges their phone, we can collect this
major events and venues across various technology sectors.
usage data - from the spot, not the phone - to show how,
He explained what he was trying to achieve in his role at
where and when charging is used and present this as space
Ascot and, with that in mind, we demonstrated our nascent
utilisation information to the Ascot team.”
solution to him at the beginning of 2019.
The installation of Chargifi’s wireless charging points took
“George – as is his way – immediately identified a number
around six months to complete, which was primarily to
of applications for the technology at Ascot, and we agreed
meet with the furniture construction and project installa-
to trial various approaches and use cases through the sea-
tion schedules.
son. AR is a technology with such a wide range of appli-
There are currently 92 Chargifi spots installed in 40 cor-
cations that we decided on using it in a variety of focussed
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