America’s Cup: ‘Massive’ spike in mobile use

Gone are the days of crowding around a television to watch the America’s Cup and then discussing the results – race fans now turn to their tablets and smart phones and tweet during key moments.

As the final races are battled out between Emirates Team New Zealand and Oracle Team USA, Telecom (in New Zealand) has reported a “massive spike” in mobile data consumption.

When the catamarans crossed the starting line shortly after 8am on Monday (New Zealand time), data consumption rose to almost double the normal level for that time of day – and spiked again an hour or so later when the second race began.

“People are live streaming the game over their mobiles, either using their browser and news websites or via the America’s Cup app,” Telecom retail chief executive Chris Quin said.

“People are also communicating about the race over social media as they watch it – tweeting their followers at key moments and posting on Facebook about the need for therapy to cope with the stress of close races.

“We’re seeing more and more of this when it comes to big live events,” he said. – New Zealand Herald