Data Analysis and AI In and Outside Orlando Stadium

Although the team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs this season, the Orlando Magic have made two NBA Finals since their establishment in 1989. While the team has not been able to lift the Larry O 'Brien Championship Trophy so far, the team is at the forefront of digital innovation and is committed to revolutionizing the fan experience.

Historically, sold-out games have been inspiring teams to exceed expectations from home spectators. Based on this awareness, the Magic have signed a strategic agreement with cross-border data analytics and AI software developer SAS to maximize the impact during the game at the Kia Center in downtown Orlando.

Specifically, the team will leverage the operational advantages brought by the SAS Viya platform to enhance the match-day experience and provide fans with personalized digital interactions. "We are constantly looking for ways to improve the fan experience, and SAS Viya will give us a deeper insight into the data and create a more personalized experience for the team's followers," said Jay Riola, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, Orlando Magic. " Through this initiative, the Magic's mission is to create a legendary experience. Riola adds: “The observability of the data and the insights gained from it will keep us evolving and growing while ensuring that fans are always at the heart of our focus.” The main goal of strengthening collaboration is to understand which behaviors and interactions can keep viewers back. With SAS Viya data and AI platform, each piece of data can be translated into more personalized interactions, exclusive content and offers tailored to personal preferences.

Through enhanced data visualization, modeling and forecasting capabilities, the Magic can optimize ticket sales forecasts and use dynamic pricing strategies to succeed while ensuring ticket availability. Strategy Core After working with the Magic for twenty years, Riola summarized the team's core values ​​as a catchphrase: teamwork, community spirit, and providing legendary services. At this stage, it attaches great importance to innovation. "We strive to create a frictionless fan experience with technology to make it as simple and intelligent as possible. Over the past 15 years, we have been analyzing data and exploring areas such as AI to expand our fan base outside of Orlando and enhance overall business operations." At the same time, the team has also launched several initiatives to promote real-time interactions, allowing fans to walk into the venue as if they were involved in a game or had an impact on the live experience.

New technologies are emerging one after another, and Riola is always alert and actively seeks opportunities to be part of the NBA ecosystem. The Magic’s core products mainly focus on supporting live events and require fans to visit the venue in person. However, the way technology interacts with fans is much more than that. “We looked at different leadership perspectives,” he said. So, whether through virtual reality or augmented reality, the team is concentrating resources, investing in a variety of digital, AI and biometric technologies to modernize and personalize the fan experience.

Simply put, hyper-personalization explores from two perspectives. First, the team is committed to providing tools to create the flexible and versatile services that fans expect. “That’s about designing the membership experience to your liking, personalizing it, and creating what you expect on every game day,” Riola said. Second, the team promises to deliver what Orlando Magic fans need in a tangible and meaningful way. The Value of Teamwork The realization of team goals in terms of technological innovation and digitalization is not easy. Without the support of partners like SAS, such a mission is impossible. “In the sports industry, it is inevitable to rely on a variety of different technologies to build the entire operation system. This is why we need to rely on a number of technology suppliers and partners to drive our initiatives,” said Riola. Speaking of data analytics and management, he added that as early as 2010, the Magic began to realize their potential, and Riola has been involved in the entire process since the date of initial collaboration with SAS. Since then, the league has begun to shape the team's future operating model.

He said: "Big data was in a booming stage, and the ticketing industry was also under the impact of the online resale market. We realized that both our own data and the data related to the team had great commercial value. At that time, we took the lead in building enterprise and live broadcast systems and found that we had multiple systems containing business and fan information. We needed to integrate these systems into a unified environment, and then use analytical tools to predict, generate business intelligence and automate processes."

Therefore, both in the past and now, the team needed a partner who could efficiently manage this data. "We have long used SAS to import data, design data warehouses, and work with third parties, such as our cloud database Snowflake. Today, we operate on AWS, so we need a partner that can work in concert with our other technology partners—from databases, storage to business intelligence tools that can interact with other SAS. This is very important to us because in the sports industry, we use a variety of technologies that are also used by important players in the industry, which carry a lot of value and information."

When talking specifically about the value of data and information managed by teams, privacy and compliance policies are naturally strictly enforced. "We are very concerned about privacy and consent and comply with all relevant privacy laws and regulations. But our goal is to collect as much data as possible about fans in order to create a personalized and meaningful relationship with them," Riola said.