PRESS RELEASE – With the 2011 season rapidly approaching the Peoria Chiefs are thrilled to announce a handful of brand new technologies available to their fans. Among the new technologies to be unveiled throughout the Peoria Chiefs organization as the 2011 season starts are: Online Streaming Radio Station, Peoria Chiefs App for smart phones and iPads, a SMART board in the Bradfield’s Conference Room on the suite floor of O’Brien Field and a Bypass lane to order concession items from a smart phone or iPad from anywhere in the stadium.
With a brand new studio on the third floor of the stadium, the Chiefs have partnered with JMP Radio in Peoria to stream all 140 Chiefs games plus interviews, highlights, past games and much more online at www.peoriachiefs.com/listenlive. The online streaming of all 140 games replaces a radio broadcast for the 2011 season but Chiefs fans will still hear every pitch and game in great detail from Broadcast & Media Manager Nathan Baliva who enters his ninth season behind the microphone for the Chiefs.
“This is a very exciting transition for the Chiefs and our media as we enter the wave of the future as far as broadcasting online,” said Baliva. “I think our fans will really enjoy the added content, the 24 hour a day access and the extra information available to them with the click of a button on the Chiefs App.”
The stream is already live and running at www.peoriachiefs.com/listenlive and until the season opener on April 7 fans can enjoy interviews Baliva conducted in the past few days with Chicago Cubs Manager Mike Quade, Cubs Vice President of Player Personnel Oneri Fleita, Chiefs Manager Casey Kopitzke, Cubs TV Broadcaster Len Kasper and Kevin Goldstein from Baseball Prospectus which will play on a loop between now and April 7. The Peoria Chiefs App comes through the JMP Radio partnership as well and was created by Xapsis. The App allows fans to listen live to the Chiefs broadcast through their smart phones (Blackberry, Droid, iPhone) or iPads while on the go. The App will be available shortly, free of cost to users, and can be downloaded through the Chiefs website or iTunes.
The Chiefs new relationship with Professional Sports Catering has added a variety of new technology available to fans for the first time at O’Brien Field for the 2011 season. Fans can now use credit or debit cards at various concession stands while ordering food or beverage. Fans can also use the brand new Bypass Service on their smart phones (Android, Blackberry OS6, Dell mobile devices, iPhone, iPads, Palm mobile devices among others) to order food or beverage from anywhere in the stadium. The Bypass mobile app can be downloaded at www.BypassLane.com. The Bypass account is free at www.BypassLane.com. Fans will be given the opportunity to view full food and drink menus of select concession stands in the vicinity of their seats and are able to place orders by paying with a credit card using Bypass’ secure payment platform. When the order is ready, a text message is sent from the nearest Bypass Lane and fans can then go to the concession stand to pick up their order, thus avoiding the lines. Bypass launched in July 2010 with Triple-A Round Rock Express and Dell Diamond. Since then they have gained traction with the Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers, Phoenix Coyotes, Carolina Hurricanes, University of Texas and many other sports and entertainment venues.
“Bypass is thrilled to be launching our service with the Peoria Chiefs,” said Bypass Lane President Brandon Lloyd. “We are passionate about the fan experience and believe concession lines are an unnecessary disruption to enjoying a day at the ballpark. We look forward to working alongside the Peoria Chiefs this spring and are excited to continue announcing new venue partners across the country throughout the year.”
The SMART board revolutionizes the newly-named Bradfield’s Conference Room which is connected to the suite lobby on the third floor of O’Brien Field. The SMART board is an interactive whiteboard that uses touch detection for user input while also displaying everything that is already on the laptop. It connects to any laptop and comes with four digital pens which use colored digital ink to replace traditional whiteboard markers. The SMART board can be used for presentations, to take notes, to show videos or television, to interact or connect to those not at the stadium via Meeting Pro and to play audio throughout the room. The SMART board will also run any program on the host computer such as Microsoft Power Point, iTunes, Media Player or Adobe Photoshop. For more information about booking the Bradfield’s Conference Room call the Peoria Chiefs at 309-680-4000.
“We are very excited about the addition of this state-of-the-art technology in our new Bradfield’s Conference Room,” said Vice President of Ticket Sales Eric Obalil. “The SMART Board, audio system and wireless capabilities, have transformed the entire meeting setup. We’ve already had several inquiries from local businesses about renting the space for off-site meetings. With the combination of the new technology and the ballpark setting, it’s an unmatched venue for hosting business sessions.”
The Chiefs home opener is set for Thursday, April 7 at 6:30 p.m. against the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim). Individual tickets go on sale at the O’Brien Field Box Office on Saturday, March 5 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Starting March 7, the Box Office will be open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Starting March 5, individual game tickets will also be available online or by calling 1-866-MYTICKET. Group and season tickets can also be purchased by calling 309-680-4000.
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