Before selfie-sticks, chest mounts, and helmet cameras came into play, extreme sports were a little different. Participation in extreme sports such as BASE jumping and incredible biking tricks were a solitary endeavor. Now, thanks to video footage, thousands flock to the scene to participate. Furthermore, many more sports-lovers now participate in the activity for the glory rather than for the love of the game. The invention of GoPro and similar accessories has truly changed the way we look at extreme sports forever.
GoPro Is Everywhere
“Next time you’re in line for the ski lift or standing at the top of the slope getting ready to start your morning lesson…take a look around and mentally note how many people are wearing GoPro devices,” says Paul Beard, Founding Director of Alltracks Academy. “It’s really quite staggering. You could arguably say the ski and snowboard industry is GoPro’s biggest market.”
You’ll see the truth behind this statement the next time you participate in any extreme sport. The small, but high-quality cameras are permeating all extreme sports, simply because of their ability to record daredevil feats in a high-quality format. To corroborate Paul Beard’s quote, GoPro is arguably the largest grossing product in the sports industry.
“When the market for compact point-and-shoot cameras appeared on the brink of collapse—undercut by sophisticated smartphone cameras that are with us all the time…few would have predicted a comeback for the single-purpose digicam,” according to Jared Newman, writer for Popular Mechanics. “And then along came GoPro to save the standalone camera by doing one thing, and doing it well.”
GoPro is one of the most popular tech devices to date, grossing nearly 100 million last year alone. That number is up 87 percent from the year before. GoPro items were also at the top of the list for most products sold during the Christmas season in 2014. It seems as if everyone in extreme sports has one of these cameras and its accessories to commemorate their endeavors.
GoPro Changes
Thanks to the intense popularity of the camera system, it is seriously changing the way we view extreme sports. Some of the most major changes include:
Marketing: GoPro has easily turned extreme sports into one of the most useful marketing tools for businesses. User generated content is becoming a go-to for many major sports industries. Rather than shelling out thousands to create a high-quality advertisement, companies can publicize a prize for the best consumer GoPro video and save significantly on their marketing. This is creating a push towards even more amateurs entering the extreme sports world in order to make a “cool” video.
Creating Overnight Sensations: There are plenty of sports stars who were discovered on the internet, and that number has tripled thanks to GoPro’s capabilities. Now that sports lovers can video themselves participating in intense recreation, which then can immediately be posted to any social network on the web, it’s easy to become an overnight sensation. This kind of attention often leads to a crowd of people who do it for the glory rather than the love of the sport, which is what drove every extreme sports enthusiast before.
Building an Online Fan Base: Once someone has posted one great video that receives a plethora of support, it’s easy to begin a vlog and grow a hefty fan base. Expert GoPro users can more easily than ever make a steady living with their passion for extreme sports alone.
Giving Up Secret Spots: There’s almost no such thing as a secret spot for a thrilling sporting anymore. Once a high-quality GoPro video makes its way across the web, you can bet that other extreme sports enthusiasts will be making their way across the country to get to the private location.
The Future of GoPro and Extreme Sports
With top sales both this year and last, GoPro isn’t going away anytime soon. It’ll only expand and develop into a better product that’s more user-friendly and productive. The future of GoPro holds limitless possibilities in video production. They are currently looking to expand their panoramic video market, build an ecosystem, get ahead of their upcoming competition, and move beyond the sports market for GoPro cameras.
Even though it will likely reach a wider audience, GoPro won’t leave the sports industry. Extreme sports lovers will continue to enjoy the benefits of GoPro technologies to showcase incredible feats and preserve lasting memories. The future only holds improvements for sports enthusiasts, as well as the rest of the world.