At the start of 2009 Guinness began development of RFID technology in association with ball manufacturers Gilbert and technological whiz kids at the Fraunhofer Institute in Nuremberg. The innovation saw an RFID chip placed in rugby balls and sensors situated around rugby pitches to monitor players and the ball itself, logging a number of statistics such as accuracy of passes and strength of tackles. A year later the innovation is coming to the fore in an interactive hub and TV spot entitled Area 22.


The spot shows a futuristic rugby training ground and ends with a link driving viewers to Area 22, a site with goodies that include an iPhone app that aggregates different rugby news feeds, a pub finder that uses Google maps and a rugby kicking game. A Facebook fan site for Irish Rugby supporters has the option to send gifts of team jerseys to friends, and has gathered 4,000 fans to date. All this, acts a prelude to the Rugby World Cup in 2011, when Guinness’ sponsorship and established brand association with Rugby will become more mainstream.


Thanks to Gavin Cumine for this story. Dead Or Alive’s hit track “You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) was number 1 on the day he was born.


References:

Contagious Magazine

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