Denver, We Have a Problem

We spend quite a bit of time on this site talking about the effect of new sports media technologies. Well, going online to buy baseball tickets is hardly new, but it is news when it happens during the World Series and hackers all but cripple one team's ability to sell tickets.

The story out of Denver this week was how sophisticated hackers got into the Colorado Rockies' ticket system and tied up ticket orders for almost two days. The Rockies finally got things straightened out and sold out their World Series home games, but the snafu forcibly illustrates the dependence sports teams and schools now have on these new technologies. Ticket sales, merchandising, marketing, public relations and sports information are just some of the areas that have now totally transitioned to online, digital platforms.

Certainly, there will be problems associated with such transitions, but as the article notes the Rubicon has been crossed and there's no turning back. And by the way, are hackers any more annoying than having to stand in line for hours (or even days) to buy tickets?