Cobo Center is spending $2 million to upgrade its broadband technology in a bid to attract e-sporting events and exhibitions with virtual reality exhibits.
The project includes installation of a pipeline system to support the 10-gigabyte broadband network offered at the downtown Detroit exhibition center by its supplier, Detroit-based Rocket Fiber, General Manager Claude Molinari said Tuesday.
The 10-gig network will allow Cobo Center to host just about any tech event in existence, Molinari said. It currently operates with 4-gig service, which is generally enough for many events, he said, but increasing capacity is a "proactive move" to make Cobo a destination for more tech-focused conventions.
The exhibition center started working with Rocket Fiber when the high-speed internet provider won a contract in September, Molinari said.
"One of the things Rocket Fiber brought to the table was this ability to give us 10 gigs of broadband internet," he said. "That's like a giant water hose of water coming in, and then our current infrastructure has a lot of garden hoses. And this $2 million upgrade is basically going to put big fire hoses throughout our facility, so we're able to receive (the 10 gigs)."
Cobo Center has started preliminary work and is contracting out installation with a bid process that will start this week, Molinari said. The entire upgrade should take 16-18 months.
The $2 million cost comes out of the convention center's capital accounts, Molinari said. Cobo Center is funded by the state of Michigan and through its own revenue. In fiscal 2016 it had budgeted to run at a deficit of about $5 million, but it ended up at the end of the year with a deficit of about $250,000.
"We've been successful at operating at greater than our projected deficits, which has left more money in capital coffers to be able to invest in the facility," he said.
Other recent technology upgrades have introduced a captive Wi-Fi portal — a page that displays on a device before it connects to an internet source — that provides a custom splash page for events like the North American International Auto Show to advertise and include sponsors.
The updates follow Cobo Center's five-year $279 million renovation and expansion project, which wrapped up in August 2015.