Introduction
The Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) wanted to deploy a reliable digital communications solution to enhance the experience of playing on Korean golf courses and to promote international golf tournaments in the country. Hytera provided its HyTalk Push-to-Talk over Cellular solution with PNC380 terminals and VM780 body worn cameras to support group and individual calling, video streaming and data to aid KPGA officials, referees and operational staff to run more efficient golf tournaments in Korea.
User
Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA)
Market Segment
Sports
Project Time
2023-2024
Product
HyTalk PoC Platform
PNC380 PoC Handheld Terminals
VM780 Body Worn Cameras
Hytera HyTalk Sight (HHS) Command and Dispatch System
Integrated Device Station (IDS)
The Background
Golf has become an increasingly popular sport for people of all ages and genders in South Korea, where the golf market experienced an average annual growth rate of 17% between 2020 and 2023. In response to this, the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) now aims to provide golfers with a better experience by introducing high quality wireless communications at the country’s golf courses.
The KPGA is also the governing body for men's professional golf tournaments in Korea and since 2007 it has organized and operated the Korea Professional Golf Tour (KGT), now known as the KPGA Korean Tour. The KPGA has set itself the goal of becoming one of the world's top five major professional golf tours. The Korean Tour hosts over 60 tournaments each year, with a total prize money of over 20 billion won.
The Korean Tour, which features renowned professional golfers from both domestic and international scenes, takes place at various golf courses from April to November each year. It garners high recognition and viewership due to the participation of famous players and attracts a large gallery of spectators.
The Challenge
The governing body chose 15 golf courses to make up the KPGA Korean Tour from among the 810 golf courses nationwide. Each of these is a 36-hole golf course with various amenities. Each course required a high quality, reliable wireless communication solution to support all the lengthy preparatory work needed to successfully put on the tournaments and to ensure their smooth operation during the actual golf matches.
The wireless communications are for use by KPGA officials, operating teams, scorers, referees, supervisors, course management staff, security guards and restaurant servers across the entire golf course and facility areas.
The solution required 4G LTE communications capable of offering wide area coverage without distance restrictions and clear audio quality without feedback. The KPGA was also looking for a solution with a compact design and locking functions to prevent unintended touches, and the functionality to support both individual and group calls, as needed.
The Solution
Hytera has built up considerable experience over the years in providing wireless communications for a wide variety of major sporting events by supplying its PMR (Professional Mobile Radio) and Push-to-Talk over Cellular (PoC) 4G LTE communication technologies and solutions.
In this case, Hytera provided its seamless and efficient 4G LTE wireless communications solution to meet the customer’s needs. It supplied its HyTalk PoC software management platform, 100 PNC380 handheld LTE terminals and 10 VM780 body worn cameras. It also implemented its Hytera HyTalk Sight (HHS) command and dispatch system, integrated device station (IDS) for downloading, managing and playing back audio, data and video, and accessories for KPGA officials and staff.
The HyTalk PoC solution offers KPGA staff voice, video and data to provide users with faster and more stable communications with Hytera’s noise-cancelling technology for the best audio quality. In addition, by deploying body worn cameras, officials can check the progress of operations in real-time, which provides them with better situational awareness. This in turn enables more informed decision making, so managers can quickly communicate with the best-placed and most relevant staff to carry out tasks or resolve a situation.
The Benefits
Nationwide, Flexible Calling with Hytera HyTalk Platform
PoC operates over existing mobile phone networks, so as long as there is a 2G, 3G or 4G signal, users can connect all over South Korea, and also via local Wi-Fi networks. The Hytera HyTalk platform provides reliable services and supports integrated management, so that administrators can remotely control radios from anywhere. Like traditional two-way radio, HyTalk enables instant PTT one-to-many group calls and also one-to-one individual calls. Users can easily switch between the two.
Small, Compact with Loud, Clear Audio
Hytera’s PNC380 4G LTE PoC terminal is designed to be small and compact for convenient use. It provides excellent and clear audio quality with dual-microphone noise reduction technology, which reduces ambient noise around golf courses to amplify user voices.
Multimedia Applications
The device also offers rich multimedia data services including 4G video transmission, location sharing, and instant messaging using 4G and WLAN networks regardless of location (small towns, mountain regions, etc.).
Rugged and Robust
The PNC380 is also extremely tough, as it meets IP67 and MIL-STD-810G standards to provide stable performance in harsh environments such as rain, dust, extreme temperatures, shock and vibration.
Easy-to-Use
Hytera provided the easy-to-use PNC380 radios to referees and operations teams. They quickly grasped how to use the terminals after only a short explanation and demonstration.
Greater Efficiency and Teamwork
Thanks to the reliable radio communications provided by the Hytera PoC solution, the technology enhanced teamwork efficiency and allowed for smooth communications throughout the competitions. Thus, golf course officials were able to provide better services, and the players were able to focus on the game and enjoy the competitions in safety.
Live Video Streaming and Security
Hytera's BWC can be configured to read data only on a dedicated PC designated by the user, ensuring information security for professional competitions or seed selection games. Also, unlike most products that are used for post-event analysis, the Hytera VM780 can provide a preemptive response thanks to its ability to transmit video in real-time.
Thanks to the reliable radio communications provided by the Hytera PoC solution, the technology enhanced teamwork efficiency and allowed for smooth communications throughout the competitions. Thus, golf course officials were able to provide better services, and the players were able to focus on the game and enjoy the competitions in safety.
Live Video Streaming and Security
Hytera's BWC can be configured to read data only on a dedicated PC designated by the user, ensuring information security for professional competitions or seed selection games. Also, unlike most products that are used for post-event analysis, the Hytera VM780 can provide a preemptive response thanks to its ability to transmit video in real-time.
Hytera provided KPGA with a highly reliable wireless communication solution supporting multiple types of voice calling, data and video transmission. The equipment enables KPGA to provide a fast and informed response to any situation in complex locations. Its use by KPGA demonstrates just how suitable Hytera’s PoC solution is for use at golf courses all over the world, as well as for other sporting events.
We were able to communicate smoothly with referees and staff anytime, anywhere through Hytera radios and body cameras and were able to conduct games with complete trust even in emergency situations.
—— Woojin Lee, KPGA Operations Team Director