Architectural rendering of the new video board and ring at the new Golden1 Center, Sacramento. (Photo Credit: Sacramento Kings/Panasonic Corporation of North America)
The Sacramento Kings new downtown home arena will have a video board more than seven times larger than the team has at its current Sleep Train Arena. The National Basketball Association franchise worked with Newark, N.J.-based Panasonic Enterprise Solutions Company to develop a network of state-of-the-art interactive display technologies for Golden1 Center, set to open early in October.
The centerpiece of the new arena will be a massive 6,100-sq.-ft. four-screen center-hung video board that will include two sideline screens, totaling 32 million pixels altogether. The main side boards will show the action in 4K ultra HD – crystal clear at four times the typical 1080 HD resolution.
The total video board will run almost baseline to baseline of the basketball court. The main screen will be 44 feet wide and over 24 feet tall, while the ribbon board atop the video board will be, at 6 feet three inches, taller than most people, if not most professional basketball players.
“There’s nothing like it in the NBA or NHL right now,” noted Juan Rodriguez, general manager and senior vice president of Arena Operations for the Sacramento Kings. “Spanning over 84 feet, it’s the length of a tractor trailer. And it will give our fan base coming to the building a crystal-clear view from anywhere you sit in the building. We’re talking 4K Ultra HD. I look at it as more of an entertainment center rather than oversimplifying it as a scoreboard. The look and feel this board is going to give is just incredible!”
In addition to the eye-popping center video board, Golden1 Center will also have two 25-foot-tall LED screens near the arena’s main doors that will offer up fan-generated content and event information; 1,500 feet of LED ribbon boards in the arena bowl that will provide statistics and aggregated social media content, along with other information; and more than 600 HD video displays throughout the venue’s concourses, clubs and suites to help fans keep up with the game in almost any situation.
All of these Panasonic products will be integrated throughout the downtown Sacramento arena to enrich the fan experience with the latest interactive display technologies.
“Panasonic is unique in that we bring together many products that provide a solution like this,” said Eric Covrig, the senior solutions manager for Panasonic Enterprise Solutions Company, a division of Panasonic Corporation of North America. Whether it’s the large-format LEDs or the small-format monitors, production cameras, projectors, whatever it might be, we provide all those solutions so that it’s a true Panasonic experience throughout the facility. Another factor with Panasonic is that we’re truly a long-term partner that can further develop these kinds of fan-experience enhancements.
Covrig said that Panasonic is currently working with the Atlanta Braves on a similar project for the team’s under-development ballpark, set to open next year. The Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL and Indianapolis Motor Speedway are other sports venues where Panasonic has already created similar systems that are up and running.
“The sheer size of the Kings’ board display is exciting,” said Covrig. “It’s going to be something different from what has been seen in NBA venues. And with the multiple displays and the 4K content it’s going to open up opportunities for the Kings to deliver different kinds of content so clearly, in such high resolution, that I think everyone will be excited to see it. Fans will find that the view on the board will be better than what’s available in some of the seats. It can be used to change the way some fans watch the game.”
The Kings’ Rodriguez points to the need to offer fans something spectacular to get them away from their cozy, connected homes and into the arena.
“We’re competing with man-caves and people staying at home,” said Rodriguez. “This new arena is becoming the place to be — you won’t want to watch the game at home, you’ll want to be at the arena to watch the game because of all the angles, all the enhancements. Our connectivity is exceptional, as well — 17,000 times faster than your home internet connection.
From the fan’s perspective — from the seats to the view to the court — we want to make Golden 1 Center, the most comfortable and engaging place to be. Overall, we want to eliminate any reason someone would not want to be in the building. We want people to have the feeling, ‘This is the place to be. This is the place to bring your show to. This is the arena to host your event at.’”
For current fans who’ve been going to Kings games at Sleep Train Arena, Rodriguez said that there is “no comparison” between the video boards and lighting there and the ones going up at Golden1 Center.
“We don’t have LED boards in Sleep Train Arena. What we’ll have at Golden1 Center is truly cutting-edge. Compared to Sleep Train it’s night and day. We’ve been tapped by our owner Vivek Ranadivé as an organization with an ‘NBA 3.0’ philosophy, which calls for all the cutting-edge technology to enhance the fan experience,” noted Rodriguez.
Panasonic’s Covrig also commented on the NBA franchise’s progressive attitude. “The Kings are very forward-thinking. They have vision well ahead of the technology and we appreciate them working with us to develop those experiences together. Some of the additional things they’re going to do down the road with technology for fan interactive experience are really going to be an experience worth seeing. I’m excited to see it developing.”
Golden1 Center, estimated to cost approximately $500 million, will be operated and managed by the Sacramento Kings team administration and the organization has a long-termed lease with owner City of Sacramento. “It’s a true public/private partnership,” said Rodriguez, “to keep this team here forever. The commitment from all parties is to make this new arena cutting-edge and great.”
The venue will serve as the site for Kings basketball games, area concerts and other high-profile events. Rodriguez describes its opening as “a month-long celebration.”
“We are so excited about what this building will be 240 days from now and for people to see what we can do here in Sacramento,” said Rodriguez. “It won’t be a Kings game that opens the building but that’s not the focus. This building is bigger than basketball and that’s how we’re looking at it. It’s more the diversity and the impact this building will have on the community as a whole. This building has been a long time coming for the people in the region, for the team and for the city in particular. The next truly great American city is being built here. Sacramento has been on the map but now we are solidifying our position on the map.”
Interviewed for this story: Juan Rodriguez, (916) 928- 0000; Eric Covrig, (201) 392-6329