Tech at center of Barclays complex

• Barclays lives up to its billing, featuring high-tech amenities that include Cisco's "Connection Stadium" free Wi-Fi.
• Cisco's "Stadium Vision" will power 700 HDTVs showing replays.
• Perhaps the most dazzling highlight of all is the Oculus, a 360-degree LED marquee that encircles the outer pavilion.

When Chip Foley was working on developing Barclays Center, his primary focus was to provide an unforgettable fan experience.

To do this, the director of building technology turned to Cisco's Connected Sports and Entertainment solutions to help make Barclays one of the most technologically advanced arenas in the world.

While the arena's unusual exterior design will surely appeal to most fans, their experience watching a game or attending a concert was never underestimated. With advances in tech-nology, proliferation of social media and up-to-the-minute news on many platforms, the Barclays staff made it a priority to cater to the next-generation fan.

Barclays lives up to its billing, featuring high-tech amenities that include Cisco's "Connection Stadium" free Wi-Fi for consistent and reliable connectivity, with 275 access points to support a packed house of smartphone- and tablet-wielding fans. Barclays also hopes to support the 4G LTE network, the fastest non-broadband, non-Wi-Fi technology available for smartphones and tablets.

The addition of reliable in-house Wi-Fi is expected to free cellular networks for more reliable phone calls and text messages.

If you are lucky enough to sit in a suite, you will have access to an iPad that features 60 high-def channels and League Pass, which televises every NBA game.

Barclays also will have a custom phone app that will provide a variety of content, from artist and event information to transportation updates to a guide to all that's available in Brooklyn. And those long waits in lines at concession stands might be a thing of the past when the app soon features the capability to order from your seat.

Cisco's "Stadium Vision" will power 700 HDTVs showing replays and about 100 concession menu boards throughout the venue.

All of the technological amenities will mesh well with some of Barclays' signature features, including a three-story tall scoreboard and, perhaps the most dazzling highlight of all, the Oculus, a 360-degree LED marquee that encircles the outer pavilion.

"Barclays Center and the Brooklyn Nets are embracing the arrival of the new fan experience," said David Holland, Cisco Sports and Entertainment Solutions general manager and vice president. "(And through the Cisco portfolio) they will be able to deliver a more interactive, social and connected experience for their fans."

Contributing: Jeff Zillgitt