Next week, Target Darts will unveil its vision for the future of the sport at IFA, introducing Target Live to a global audience for the first time.
Image Credit: Target Darts
The groundbreaking connected platform is set to transform how players, fans and professionals play, compete and interact. For the first time, users will be able to step onto the oche and play alongside World Champion and current world number one Luke Littler, from anywhere in the world.
This October, Target Live and Target Arcade will launch to the public. Ahead of that, Target will unveil both platforms at IFA in Berlin (4th-8th September), where attendees will be able to experience the technology powering the next era of darts.
At this year’s IFA, Target will showcase the full Target ecoystem; including Target Live, Target Arcade, Target Dartzone and OMNI, giving visitors an opportunity to try live connected play, explore new game formats and see how professional-level interaction works in real time.
Target Live is Target’s new interactive entertainment platform. The concept challenges a fundamental limitation that exists across almost every other major sport.
You can watch Lionel Messi. You can follow him on social media. You can buy his shirt.
But you cannot play against him.
Target Live changes that.
Fans will be able to compete directly against stars such as Luke Littler and Beau Greaves, join global challenges, and take part in new entertainment formats featuring professional players, celebrities and creators.
Supplementing the success of DartCounter’s online matchplay, Target Live introduces a new, complementary format for darts entertainment, with planned regular live sessions featuring professional players, celebrities, coaches and emerging darts personalities. Players will be able to join these experiences, compete alongside their favourite names and take part in live moments that bring fans closer to the sport’s biggest personalities.
And unlike a simulation or video game, every dart thrown is real.
Alongside Target Live, Target will launch Target Arcade, a new gaming platform built specifically for connected play.
Some experiences are designed for families and friends looking for pure fun, while others are built for serious players looking to sharpen their skills.
Target Arcade will debut with seven games, including Board is Lava, Battlesplash and Alien Invasion, with new titles added every month thereafter.
Powering both Target Live and Target Arcade is OMNI, Target’s patented connected technology platform.
By combining proprietary dart-recognition algorithms with real-time cloud connectivity, OMNI transforms a traditional dartboard into a connected device capable of supporting live competition, interactive entertainment and gaming experiences at global scale.
More than an auto scoring system, OMNI provides the technology layer that underpins Target’s vision for a connected future of darts.
Target has already connected tens of thousands of players through OMNI and DartCounter and believes connected experiences will play an increasingly important role in driving participation over the next decade.
James Tattersall, CEO of Target Darts, said: “For more than fifty years, Target has focused on pushing the sport forward through innovation.
“Today, we’re taking another step towards what we believe the future of darts can become.
“We want a future where fans don’t just watch the sport – they become part of it. Where geography is no barrier to competition. Where playing against the world’s best players is possible from your own home. Where gaming, entertainment and sport come together to create entirely new experiences. And where new audiences discover darts through the personalities, stories and moments that make the sport so special.
“Target Live and Target Arcade are important milestones on that journey, but the ambition is much bigger.”
Through its investment in connected technology, Target is expanding beyond equipment to create the infrastructure for the future of darts, redefining how the sport is played, experienced and shared around the world.
Target Live, Target Arcade and DartCounter will be available to customers as part of a subscription model, as well as being available at Target Dartzones.
For more information, visit: www.targetdarts.com
