“How the Super Bowl Uses Big Data to Change the Game”

            The data collection techniques and analyses for NFL games have greatly improved with the use of Big Data, thus creating a very technologically savvy Super Bowl. This use of big data has allowed for a vast collection of data on NFL teams and players, granting them opportunities to review and improve on their games. Additionally, this improvement in data collection and usage has not only provided benefits to NFL coaches and players, but it has also allowed for advertisers and NFL fans to capitalize on this useful info.

            I found it interesting that most of the “online chatter” about the Super Bowl takes place after the game. It is important for advertisers to realize this, because Super Bowl advertisements are extremely expensive ($5 million for a 30 second time slot). Because online ads are cheaper in cost, readily available, and easily sharable, they serve as a great opportunity for advertisers to capitalize on. However, will this make television advertisements less appealing or even obsolete? In a recent article entitled, "Companies Release Super Bowl Ads to Maximize Exposure," The New York Times discussed how several major companies, such as Budweiser and LG Electronics have already released their game-day ads in hopes of establishing an audience base, emphasizing the strong competition among advertisements during the Super Bowl. Marr also discussed how big data indicated that social media users discuss more about the brands, half-time shows, and commercials than the Super Bowl game itself. This is also especially important for advertisers to realize; this information may change the way they market their brands on TV or even remove their ads on TV to focus on online marketing. Lastly, it is important to know that the use of big data can indicate when an NFL player suffers a damaging injury, due to the sensors on players’ helmets and pads. This use of big data could potentially alleviate the “concussion problem” that threatens the wellness of professional football players. According to Frontline's article, "The NFL's Concussion Problem Still Has Not Gone Away," and over the 2013 and 2014 NFL seasons, 306 players have suffered a total of 323 concussions. Players have also been known to return to playing without missing a game and fully recovering. The use of big data and sensors on players would potentially help solve this problem.

            Marr discussed the issues with the Microsoft tablets and their connectivity issues, yet he did not discuss how the tablets actually affected the coaches and the NFL players. The article did not address if the tablets helped or hurt the NFL teams and their strategies. The article also did not discuss how the use of Big Data in Super Bowl is any different than previous Super Bowls. Lastly, Marr did discuss how Big Data allowed marketers to discover how influential online advertisements were after the Super Bowl. However, he overlooked how Big Data could be used to advertise on television.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2016/02/03/how-the-super-bowl-uses-big-data-to-change-the-game/#20c0efd471e4

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/02/02/us/ap-us-super-bowl-ads-glance.html?ref=topics&_r=0

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/the-nfls-concussion-problem-still-has-not-gone-away/