Comments on: Share The Data and Spread the Word http://harnessracingblog.com/share-the-data-and-spread-the-word/ A Harness Racing Blog Fri, 05 Sep 2008 23:24:20 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: admin http://harnessracingblog.com/share-the-data-and-spread-the-word/#comment-295 admin Tue, 06 May 2008 00:18:41 +0000 http://harnessracingblog.com/share-the-data-and-spread-the-word/#comment-295 Good point Daniel, and something I was going to mention in the post, some bodies do it better then others. I guess what is really needed (besides the obvious solution of simply making databases free to all) is for the industry to sit down and work out how technology can benefit it. Case in point, a while back some people from Standardbred Canada were wondering why some websites (e.g. <a href="http://www.racingday.com/latestNews.mdg" rel="nofollow">www.racingday.com</a> and <a href="http://www.pacetoplacestable.com/The_News/Latest_Stable_News/" rel="nofollow">www.pacetoplacestables</a>) are syndicating Harnesslink's news and not theirs. We told them it was because they didn't offer the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSS_(file_format)" rel="nofollow">syndication technology</a> on their website in the first place. Of course it's not reasonable to expect normal people to understand or even be aware of such technology - but if it can be used to promote racing then it should be someone's job to be know about it and educate people as to how it can benefit racing. I suppose it goes back to basics though, in that if you can't provide the simple stuff - video and stats for free, then your not going to be looking into the more complicated technology. Gambling will become more and more an web based business, and if you don't provide people with the tools they need to continue betting, they will simply move to an industry that provides them. The argument that the major fan base in harness racing are typically older and therefore not very interested in the web doesn't really work, because one day you'll wake up and those people won't be around any more. And if no effort has been made to use technology to draw in younger fans then you won't be left with much. Good point Daniel, and something I was going to mention in the post, some bodies do it better then others. I guess what is really needed (besides the obvious solution of simply making databases free to all) is for the industry to sit down and work out how technology can benefit it.

Case in point, a while back some people from Standardbred Canada were wondering why some websites (e.g. http://www.racingday.com and http://www.pacetoplacestables) are syndicating Harnesslink’s news and not theirs. We told them it was because they didn’t offer the syndication technology on their website in the first place.

Of course it’s not reasonable to expect normal people to understand or even be aware of such technology - but if it can be used to promote racing then it should be someone’s job to be know about it and educate people as to how it can benefit racing.

I suppose it goes back to basics though, in that if you can’t provide the simple stuff - video and stats for free, then your not going to be looking into the more complicated technology.

Gambling will become more and more an web based business, and if you don’t provide people with the tools they need to continue betting, they will simply move to an industry that provides them. The argument that the major fan base in harness racing are typically older and therefore not very interested in the web doesn’t really work, because one day you’ll wake up and those people won’t be around any more. And if no effort has been made to use technology to draw in younger fans then you won’t be left with much.

]]> By: Daniel http://harnessracingblog.com/share-the-data-and-spread-the-word/#comment-287 Daniel Fri, 02 May 2008 13:34:18 +0000 http://harnessracingblog.com/share-the-data-and-spread-the-word/#comment-287 That's a tough one, some bodies in Australia such as Harness Racing Victoria have last lap replays online for every race with the results when they upload stewards reports, however this is all reasonably closed within the HRA site. One of the biggest problems here is that the people in charge of the resources are probably blind to the marketing opportunities that exist online, as well as the fact that money is not exactly abundant at the moment in the recovery from EI. The future of the sport is probably online, but at the moment, particularly in Australia, the major fan base is an older generation, but to get harness racing back where it was twenty, thirty or forty years ago, an embrace of technology must take place. One problem I have with the USTA and Standardbred Canada is the account and charging the general public to use the database, it is the only governing body in the world that hides it database with such vigor. Here in Australia and New Zealand we can freely access results and horses complete histories easily. New Zealand have probably the best system in the world, in that each race is available in its entirety online. If only the rest of the world followed this lead, where harness racing is a lot bigger than anywhere else in the world in terms of local sports. That’s a tough one, some bodies in Australia such as Harness Racing Victoria have last lap replays online for every race with the results when they upload stewards reports, however this is all reasonably closed within the HRA site.

One of the biggest problems here is that the people in charge of the resources are probably blind to the marketing opportunities that exist online, as well as the fact that money is not exactly abundant at the moment in the recovery from EI.

The future of the sport is probably online, but at the moment, particularly in Australia, the major fan base is an older generation, but to get harness racing back where it was twenty, thirty or forty years ago, an embrace of technology must take place.

One problem I have with the USTA and Standardbred Canada is the account and charging the general public to use the database, it is the only governing body in the world that hides it database with such vigor. Here in Australia and New Zealand we can freely access results and horses complete histories easily.

New Zealand have probably the best system in the world, in that each race is available in its entirety online. If only the rest of the world followed this lead, where harness racing is a lot bigger than anywhere else in the world in terms of local sports.

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