As the 2012 European championships draws ever closer it is an exciting prospect that for the first time on Irish terrestrial television all the matches can be viewed in high definition. A lot of shops, cafes and publicans have capitalized on this and have had Saorview or Saorview/satellite combi boxes installed for the big occasion and as there is not a monthly charge for these type of boxes it makes it a very attractive feature for retail. A simple USB stick can be connected to one of these boxes so that a match can easily be played back the following day for customers to enjoy and relive what hopefully will be an quality tournament and we will all be praying that our heroes in green can deliver the goods and pull out a few surprise results. From an investment point of view these retail TV systems can have untold benefits to the consumer market. For example by adding another 60cm satellite dish to the system, Eurosport can be screened free of charge. Eurosport show a wealth of sought after sports events such as tennis opens, motor sports, cycling tournaments and football. Having such a channel to view in the background encourages shoppers to stay in store longer and having sporting attire on display teases the consumer to buy clothes associated with sports etc. Obviously having a football match of high interest on replay will also encourage consumers to have another coffee or a beer to see the end of a game and if it’s our own Trap’s army you’re showing there will be no turning it off. The 2012 Euros creates a great party atmosphere and hopefully we will get the fine weather which always makes tournaments of this type more enjoyable. For retail and commercial business’s it’s a great opportunity to capitalise on what promises to be a fantastic occasion.
