Case Study: Sunny days ahead for 51pegasi - October 2005  

Sport and Technology takes a closer look at French company 51pegasi, a precursor in the growing market of integrated sports event management services. 51pegasi's software solutions include event organisation, competition results and media feed services as well as handheld statistics tools. It has recently secured global company Siemens as an investor.

51pegasi is a technology platform provider for the sports industry that was established in 2004 by a high-calibre management team with a strong track record in sports as well as technology. Before founding 51pegasi, Gilles Vliegen, the company’s CEO, created several successful software companies and served as an officer in a number of technology firms such as Interleaf and Unify. Other members of the founding team include former technical directors of the International Olympic Committee and Amaury Sport Organisation, the producer of the Tour de France.
Together the founders put into practice a fascinating idea: to manage all data flows of a sports event in a single integrated software solution. The XML-based architecture at the heart of 51pegasi’s technology makes such a solution possible.
It allows 51pegasi to offer a solution to sports events independent of their size and the sport featured. The software covers all key sport event management applications. It includes the management of its participants (i.e. athletes, coaches, staff and volunteers) and its supplies (from the car park to mobile scoreboards). It also manages and distributes all competition-related sports data. Moreover, the system functions as a planning tool which enables event organisers to manage their workforce, control their inventory, lay out the event calendar and keep track of the rules and regulations of their competitions.

Handling all the tasks

It is easy to illustrate the power of such an approach. At a large event this solution is able to handle all major tasks. At first, the 51pegasi event system can accredit the workforce which typically includes a large number of volunteers. The event system can for example equip all volunteers with mobile phones or any other devices which are tracked by the system’s Inventory Module. A volunteer can then be assigned to a specific task: for example, having to accompany an accredited athlete from their accommodation (which is referenced in the system’s Accommodation Module) to the competition venue. To do that, the volunteer will be assigned a car by the system to drive the athlete to a scheduled event. During the competition, the system will capture the athlete’s competition data that will then be directed to the TV channels. The channel is able to use 51pegasi’s solution to show graphic displays of the athlete’s performance to its audience.
This holistic product philosophy has already attracted the interest of Siemens, one of the world’s largest technology and communications companies. Siemens has already started to strengthen its position as a major infrastructure provider for sports venues and events, an area that it sees as a very attractive market. As interest in sports events keeps increasing, so does the demand for more sophisticated and secure stadiums. Few companies are better equipped than Siemens to provide a complete offering. More specifically, Siemens is able to cover around 10% of the total development cost of servicing a sports venue. By 2010, the company claims that this share could double.
As Dr Peter van Gend, a member of Siemens One, the company’s enterprise-wide sales and marketing arm, explains: “It is critical to understand the unique infrastructure needs of our customers. By integrating products and services into one solution, Siemens can save its customers millions in start-up and maintenance costs. 51pegasi’s software is a compelling addition to our solution sets and will help us offer our customers more tailored offerings for their venues.”

A marriage of convenience

Currently, Siemens is creating a modular event and venue management solution that will integrate 51pegasi’s solutions. The Siemens solution addresses the operational needs of event organisers and venue operators and will accommodate the domains of people access, accreditation, ticketing, payment (‘electronic purse’), event contact centers and venue command centres.
51pegasi is Siemens’ key cooperation partner for its accreditation offering. 51pegasi has enhanced its own accreditation management system and tailored it to the needs of major sports events. The accreditation solution is already marketed to customers on several continents.
On 28 September 2005, Siemens went a step further to strengthen the ties between the two companies. 51pegasi announced a round of funding led by Siemens Venture Capital totaling €1.8m. As part of the investment, Dr Uwe Albrecht, head of the Siemens Venture Capital Corporate Fund, will join the board of 51pegasi. Proceeds from the investment will be used to fund key acquisitions, further develop 51pegasi’s product range and expand sales and marketing activities.
Albrecht confirms: “The sports event production market is large and consistently growing, making it an attractive sector for Siemens to pursue given our strength in building technologies, communications, lighting and power.” Albrecht is impressed by the extensive network of the 51pegasi founding team, and the credibility they have earned in the marketplace.
Meanwhile, 51pegasi is convinced that this investment from a global industry leader is an endorsement of how 51pegasi’s IT software is driving advancements in the evolution of the world of sports production. Watch this space for further developments!

For further information on 51pegasi call + 33 1 49 37 09 57 or e-mail: info@51pegasi.com

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