SVG Sit-Down: CUE Audio's Kyle Campbell Puts Fans at the Center of the In-Venue Experience

SVG Sit-Down: CUE Audio's Kyle Campbell Puts Fans at the Center of the In-Venue Experience The data-over-audio provider's most recent effort was for Formula 1's Miami Grand Prix By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor

Wednesday, May 17, 2023 - 12:17 pm

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Going to the ballpark, stadium, or arena is a communal activity: cheering for the home team, jeering opposing players, coming together to enjoy a sports event. These days, that shared experience is turning into an event focused on the fans in the stands. Enabling these in-venue moments through mobile engagement is the aim of CUE Audio, a provider of data-over-audio, fan-first technology. Founded in 2017 by Jameson Radar and Ira Akers, the company started off in collegiate athletics with the University of Nebraska, University of Wisconsin, and Marquette University and has expanded to professional sports in all leagues, including NHL Western Conference Finalist Vegas Golden Knights and NFL AFC Conference Finalist Cincinnati Bengals, and to global events like the 2023 World Baseball Classic in Miami. CUE Audio Experience Guru Kyle Campbell sat down with SVG to discuss his team's effort at the recent Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, ways in which game-day productions extend beyond the venue, and more.

For anyone who isn't familiar with CUE Audio, what are some of the solutions it provides?

Previously, we were focused only on our cellphone light shows using our acoustic modem, but we made a transition through an acquisition to be more videoboard-focused. Our cellphone light shows require an app, but we're mostly web-based, so we're able to flip around any of our activations in a matter of days if we need to. We want to engage [with fans] through their phones as well as with our partners through sponsorable inventory. We're also rewarding our participants with a prize or a chance to win something. We want these opportunities to be beneficial for every party involved.

CUE Audio's Kyle Campbell runs the F1 Miami Grand Prix show from inside the Hard Rock Stadium control room.

What is the setup in the control room for FanSee! or the light show?

There's a laptop or desktop that is part of the installation that we provide, but it's truly plug-and-play since it's an Ethernet connection. After that, it's a second screen to see the actual output of the videos that are coming in, taking the output and creating a video input for your frame sync into your video server. That file can then be controlled through a production switcher.

The way the light show works is taking the audio of the intro video that our client is delivering and uploading that to our web portal. The client is able to customize all the on-screen content, and we program all the flashes and triggers on our end. Once they download the .wav file [that we created], they're able to embed it right back onto their video. As long as the phone is in our app, the flashes on the fans' devices match up with the sound in the venue. As one of the programmers, I get to try to make the lights look the way the music feels.

You were previously with the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans. How do you use your previous work experience as an advantage?

Working with all these teams has been interesting because everyone operates differently. We've had to be adaptable and step outside of our comfort zone. Whether it's FanSee!, our light show, or trivia, we also need to be respectful of how we integrate our offerings into their production space. I've stressed to my colleagues that we need to think of what it's like coming from their perspective.

Some people may think that production crews show up and everything works, but that's not the reality. It's about connecting with the right people - both engineers and production personnel - ahead of time to make that everything's working properly in their system. Ultimately, we want our elements to work without affecting their run of show.

CUE Audio lit up Cincinnati's Paycor Stadium before the Bengals' NFL Wild Card matchup with the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 15.

Another advantage would be the relationships that I have. For example, I'm able to create a partnership with a handful of people that I know in the NFL. That part has been helpful because it feels like friends doing business instead of two unfamiliar individuals doing business.

How do you work with in-venue crews to optimize these workflows?

FanSee! is less than a year old. We were running the beta version with the Los Angeles Chargers last year in SoFi Stadium. Since it's relatively new, we want to continuously innovate this product, and our development team does an amazing job of taking feedback internally or from our clients. If a specific team wants to do something differently, we take that advice and turn it around quickly for our next update.

Videoboards at the Miami International Autodrome deployed CUE Audio's FanSee! product.

The biggest one would be the onsite demo that we did in February with Atlanta United. They had the idea of making the button that fans would press to go live a little bigger because it was the same size as everything else. Four days later, we had a new version that had a larger, more obvious live button. For in-venue crews, it's nice to feel like there's some ownership in this process.

Can you speak on the diversity of your company's portfolio?

The first event I ever sold was a 400-person eyelash conference in Los Angeles last year. The very next week, we got the San Francisco 49ers as my first sports-centric client. I always say that [your material] could be seen by either 1,200 people at a conference or by 70,000-100,000 people at a sports venue. In reference to leveraging relationships, I was talking with th

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2023/05/17/svg-sit-down-cue-audios-kyle-ca...
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