Page 137 - AC/E Digital Culture Annual Report 2016

wristbands together and press their heart button at the same time. The next time their bracelets were scanned the Facebook friend request would automatically be processed. In 2015, however, no further changes were introduced nor were the bands linked to the app as in the cases of other festivals. rst in the country to adopt the cashless system, Lollapalooza75 and the Governor’s Ball – or Europe, for example Weather Winter in Paris.This new type of wearable technology looks set to take over and unify basic festival processes. As we have seen, these wristbands make it possible to unify tools for rapidly validating access, speeding up the payment of drinks and merchandise, social networking and sharing activities. From the point of the view of the organisation and management, these tools also facilitate many crucial points (payment times and handling of queues, entrances/exists), as well as providing much more data in real time in a manner compatible with protecting festival goers’ rights to privacy and information.2.7. DronesRobots have been around for some time now (in factories, or in less substantial form, as Internet bots...), but if there is one kind of technology that has been attracting attention in recent years it is drones. Technically termed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), they can be computer or remote controlled or autonomous, equipped with onboard computers or even arti cial intelligence technology.Drones, the most commercial version designed for civil usage, have been notable in recentyears for their sudden price drop, more e cient manufacturing methods, improved design and software (they come with hardware and free software) and new uses. They have also received signi cant impetus from maker and DIY culture.Civil drones are most commonly used to take aerial images or to transport small objects. They have been used to record music at concertsof very di erent types (pop, heavy metal...). In contrast, they are still rarely used at festivals, though they could perform interesting functions in the future. So far they have been used more to enhance the aesthetic experience at festivals.It should be stressed that Tomorrowlandand its American spino s take very seriouslythe elaborate imagery they develop as theirown distinctive storyline, an aesthetic that is designed to provide an enhanced experience; they even incorporate it into the wristbandsthat are delivered to attendees’ homes weeks before the festival.74 Instead of fabric or plastic, the wristbands are made of leather or materials similar to those of hand-crafted fashion bracelets and the device in which the RFID is embeddedis shaped like a logo in relief. The box in which the wristband is sent together with instructions sports a similar design.The use of this wearable technology (RFID- enabled wristbands) at music festivals attended chie y by young people is spreading, given its potential and ability to improve certain aspects of festival goers’ experience. We could add a few more names to the list, especially festivals in the US – such as Mysteryland, which was theAC/E DIGITAL CULTURE ANNUAL REPORT 2016137Focus: Use of New Digital Technologies at Cultural Festivals