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AT&T launches 5G-powered AR program Game View within the WNBA app

Thomas Hindmarch
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AT&T will soon offer a new augmented reality experience to fans who use the official WNBA app, which you can download on the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, though the feature won’t available to Android users at launch. Starting on September 23, fans of women’s basketball will be able to use the AT&T 5G Game View feature to view interactive, customizable stats for WNBA players in live and recorded games. It also provides the ability to share images and clips on social media, track teams’ progress in the postseason, follow teams’ and players’ stats with real-time 3D during live games, and use “fun AR animations” to celebrate teams’ and players’ milestones.

Through the app, Game View also lets users participate in the Bracket Challenge for WNBA postseason games. Users can review past games’ data in order to fill out their bracket for the playoffs and try to predict how the tournament will unfold, scoring points for successful guesses. Game View’s Bracket Challenge is also compatible with unspecified social media platforms, to allow for the most efficient gloating possible whenever long shot picks pay off.

AT&T 5G panel discussion
AT&T

The new feature is built on top of the previously existing AT&T StatsZone feature that launched earlier this year within the Chicago Bulls app.

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“Since the pandemic, fans have increasingly turned to their devices and technology to stay close to their favorite sports teams and still feel part of the action, whether they’re inside an arena or streaming from their couch,” said Jay Cary, vice president of 5G product and innovation at AT&T. “That’s why we’re excited to team up with Nexus and the WNBA to show how the power of 5G can elevate how fans not only watch, but engage with the best moments sports have to offer through new immersive experiences.”

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Game View will initially be available for the iOS version of the WNBA app and is planned to debut on Android “in the coming days.” Interested users can access the new feature via the WNBA app by selecting the More icon on startup, then selecting AT&T 5G Game View.

Game View will initially be available for the iOS version of the WNBA app and is planned to debut on Android “in the coming days.”

This follows up on a series of events over the course of the last couple of years where AT&T has partnered with both the NBA and WNBA to use their programming to showcase a number of pilot projects for its American 5G rollout.

This includes the first professional sports broadcast in 5G in 2019, a 5G-powered “Courtside Cam” during the 2020 NBA All-Star game, and its recent “holo-interviews” on TNT, which aired during the NBA Conference Finals and won AT&T 5G Holovision a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Digital Innovation.

AT&T plans to set up “more than half” of the NBA arenas in the United States with 5G+ coverage (also known as mmWave) by the end of 2021. It currently covers over 20 venues, including Chicago’s United Center, Houston’s Toyota Center, and the AT&T Center in San Antonio.

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Thomas Hindmarch
Thomas Hindmarch
Contributing writer
Thomas Hindmarch is a freelance writer with 20 years' experience in the gaming and technology fields. He also writes for…
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