DB Systems provide WiFi infrastructure for One Direction: This is Us movie premiere in Leicester Square
DB System’s connectivity division, Event Networks, provided the WiFi network in Leicester Square for the world premiere of One Direction’s new 3D movie “One Direction: This is Us” on Tuesday 20th August.
It is thought to be the first time that a WiFi network has been installed for a crowd waiting for a movie premiere in Leicester Square and is a reflection of the massive social hype and social media sharing that the band engender in their young fan-base.
Jay Goldson, Head of DB Networks, commented: “The organisers of the One Direction: This is Us premiere were expecting a really high level of social media activity from a big crowd in a relatively small area and wanted to ensure that the excitement of the fans at the event could be captured and shared globally. WiFi provision in the area is very limited and mobile networks would not have coped with the intense density of activity, so they needed a robust and reliable WiFi system.
“We installed satellites on the roof of The Empire in Leicester Square to provide bandwidth, which significantly increased the ability of fans to upload or download content at the event. Our system showed over 40 tweets a second being processed through the satellites, and globally the event generated over 3.6 million tweets in a single day.”
DB Event Networks are increasingly taking advantage of satellite-based systems to provide bandwidth to events. This enables them to install a network within a much shorter lead-time and removes the reliance on traditional ISP’s less accustomed to delivering temporary connections.
DB Event Networks provides solutions to a diverse range of events and venues including the AECC, Farnborough Airshow, and Silverstone, but this is the first time they’ve been asked to create a network for a film premiere.
Oliver Richardson, DB’s Sales and Marketing Director, commented: “This is an exciting new opportunity for us. The exponential rise in social media in the last few years means that events like this need to implement additional infrastructure to satisfy the demands of their visitors but also to ensure they maximise the social media marketing opportunity an event presents. We’ve invested over £300k on high grade wireless equipment this year and are now the UK’s largest stockist of event Wi-Fi access points so are well positioned to take advantage of this new trend.”