As the market cap of Apple surpasses that of Microsoft, another Evil Empire is at it again: Yankee Stadium has banned the iPad, apparently as a security hazard.
As a member of Major League Baseball who’s Advanced Media division is the leader is mobile and Internet technology among all sports leagues this is shocking an embarrassing for the Yankees.
The MLB app on the iPad is even better than those on the iPhone and Android. That larger screen real estate does amazing things. But Yankee stadium has a ban on laptops and believes that as a laptop the iPad is a non-starter.
While personally I can’t see bringing an iPad or my laptop with me the next time I head to Fenway Park, an outright ban of those devices is just foolish.
Should tablet computers (and possibly the man purse to hold them) become the norm stadiums would have the ability to push out content – the day’s program, a scorecard (there’s already an app for that), exclusive content from MLB.com or the local columnists written for the game. Imagine an interactive queue system to check the lines at the food courts.
In any case, the Hudson Valley Renegades are trying to grab a few minutes of fame: free tickets to fans with iPads.