https://blogs.wsj.com/cio/2018/09/17/fanatics-revamps-cloud-platform-addressing-the-online-unpredictability-of-sports-fandom/
Fanatics Revamps Cloud Platform, Addressing the Online Unpredictability of Sports Fandom
Online sports merchandiser looks to develop technology at the speed of 'the emotions of sports'
Steven Norton
BiographySteven Norton
@steven_norton
steven.norton@wsj.com
Chicago Bears player Khalil Mack displays his jersey after speaking to the media during a news conference Sept. 2, 2018, at Halas Hall in Lake Forest, Ill. Photo: Tim Boyle/Associated Press
During a Chicago Bears debut on Sept. 9 that included a first-half Pick 6, linebacker Khalil Mack's star began to rise, in real time, as couch-bound fans poured into online apparel retailer Fanatics Inc.
Within an hour after the end of the first half, Khalil Mack merchandise had more sales than the next highest player -- Tom Brady -- had all day. More than 70% of the Mack sales came from mobile devices.
Fanatics Chief Technology and Product Officer Matt Madrigal, who oversees the technology platform underpinning the company's portfolio of more than 300 online and offline sites, said he was surprised to see a surge in traffic from the Bears team store, one of the many avenues through which fans can purchase gear.
But the company, whose technology drives the merchandise websites for the NFL, MLB, MLS, NBA, NHL and Nascar, as well as more than 200 college and professional sports teams, was ready. For the last several years, Fanatics has been developing a home-grown cloud platform designed to handle the sometimes predictable, sometimes surprising online traffic spikes associated with fans seeking out their favorite team's merchandise.
The platform, rolled out in stages since 2016, represents a shift from a single, shared code base to distributed microservices, in which software applications are deployed as a set of independent, reusable services. Using a mix of open source technologies, including the node.js and React frameworks for application development, as well as cloud infrastructure from Amazon.com Inc.'s Amazon Web Services, the platform can use tools such as auto-scaling groups, which automatically spins up more infrastructure if traffic exceeds expectations, as it did in the Khalil Mack scenario.
By making it easier to scale compute, "you can get more aggressive ... instead of [asking], 'will I have enough hardware in my on-premise environment,'" Mr. Madrigal said.
It also allows developers to create services that work across both the desktop and mobile platforms. Before, they would have to create separate applications for desktop web and mobile web.
Mr. Madrigal and his team now are focused on improving page-loading speed and checkout, while adding features that allow the company to scale up tech infrastructure faster. Since launching the platform, full-page rendering has become twice as fast, Mr. Madrigal said.
The NFL Shop, the first site fully migrated to the new platform, saw an immediate 30% uptick in conversions, Mr. Madrigal said. Fanatics is preparing to roll out web applications that provide an app-like experience without requiring users to download an app. That can make it easier for fans to shop for jerseys in bandwidth-limited situations, such as while they're sitting in a crowded stadium full of other gear-hungry customers.
"The emotions of sports move just as fast as the action on the field, so we need a platform that reacts in real time," Mr. Madrigal said.
Write to steven.norton@wsj.com
MATT MADRIGAL
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