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>> Jim: College football doesn't get much bigger
than when the Big Ten's Purdue Boilermakers clash
with their in-state rivals Notre Dame's Fighting Irish.
65,000 screaming fans relive every exciting play
on Ross H. Stadium's bigger than life jumbotron.
Increasingly fans will turn their attention
to their cell phones.
Purdue's eStadium Project now connects cell phones
to a server filled with the video of nearly every play.
Highlights can be viewed on demand as often as fans like.
>> It gives the fans the opportunity
to experience the highlights
and actually enhances the overall enjoyment of the game
because they can experience the live, the touchdown
and the stadium's -- the surge of noise in the stadium
when the play occurs but then they can turn right
around at their leisure and re-look at it
and see the more closer details
of the actual play that's occurred.
>> Jim: Internet capable cell phones can receive replays
from up to 6 camera angles.
Replays are archived by type of play and player involved,
up-to-date stats, scores from other games and player
and coach bios are all available.
Another new addition allows fans to track each team's progress
on the field with color-coded bars.
>> Part of our charge is that we want the fans to get some value
out of the product we're delivering.
>> Jim: Launched in 2001 eStadium originally catered
to PDA's and laptop computers.
New cell phone accessibility is expected to increase usage
from the hundreds to the thousands.
>> I think as, you know, 3G services, you know,
3rd generation cellular services are available almost throughout
the country now, so eventually we'll see almost everybody
in the stands have the capability
of viewing our applications.
Now, about the only thing
if you have a data plan you can view everything
that we have on there.
>> Jim: The interactive system allows fans to vote for game MVP
and e-mail questions to the coach.
Joe Chula [assumed spelling] answers 1 selected question
at each post-game press conference.
Purdue continues to test new applications including the
ability to avoid delays on the concourse level
by preordering food items
and visually monitoring lines outside restrooms
by tapping into video cameras.
>> We get input not only from the students but the fans
on the type of applications they would like to see
in this environment, so some of the changes
that you're experiencing
or the fans are experiencing are a direct result of input
from the students here on campus.
>> Jim: Purdue has no plans to charge its fans
to use the system but the university is exploring
opportunities to commercialize the technology
to make it available to sports fans at venues
across the country and to fund future research.
>> We have undergraduate students and graduate students
and PhD students all working together with staff
for the development of the products that we're delivering.
The other part of it is it's a true research initiative
where we are capturing good data and network volume to be able
to assess how you deliver visual contact on demand visual
in this type of an environment.
>> Jim: TV licensing agreements limit live usage to fans
in the stadium but at midnight
on game day the service is then available
to anyone with Internet access.
With Purdue News Service I'm Jim Shank.