About 20 minutes by car from JR Nagano Station, in a corner of Zenkoji-daira, sandwiched between the Chikuma River and the Saigawa River, lies a huge UFO-like building shining in silver. It is the Nagano City Majima Sports Arena, commonly known as the "White Ring.
The White Ring was built as the venue for the 1998 Nagano Olympics, and figure skating and short track speed skating competitions were held here. After the Olympics, it was renovated and turned into a civic gymnasium, and various sporting events have been held in the main arena; since 2019, it has also been used as the home arena for the Shinshu Brave Warriors of the B League.

Appearance of White Ring

Source: White Ring website

B-League games in the main arena

Source: NAGANO SPIRIT

In this white ring, local 5G was introduced in the museum with the adoption of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' FY2023 Regional Digital Infrastructure Utilization Promotion Project (subsidized project). Basic applications have been in actual operation since FY2024, and demonstrations for further new uses are currently underway.
What kind of effects did the introduction of local 5G to the White Ring have, and how will the use of local 5G be expanded in the future? We spoke with Tomoyuki Watanabe of NAGANO SPIRIT Corporation and Atsushi Kanazawa of Nagano City's Sports and Sports Division, who are promoting a series of initiatives.

Dramatically improved service levels when hosting B-League matches

We are currently working simultaneously to increase the functionality of our white rings and to introduce local 5G." The background to all of this is the Shinshu Brave Warriors' entry into the B Premier," says Watanabe.
The B Premier has requirements regarding the number of seats and various facility improvements for the home arenas of participating teams. The Shinshu Brave Warriors, who have already been selected to participate in the B Premier, must meet these arena requirements by 2028.
B Premier's arena requirements include the development of the arena's ICT environment, and it is imperative that we increase user satisfaction with the communications environment." (Mr. Watanabe)

Tomoyuki Watanabe, NAGANO SPIRIT Co.

So what challenges have existed in the communication environment of the white ring so far?
The B-League games attract thousands of spectators, and this sometimes made the communication environment unstable during the games. In the past, the operator and spectators used the same mobile carrier lines, so when all the spectators were communicating at the same time, the operator's line would get jammed up as well. (Mr. Watanabe)
The management uses communications for various purposes. Various service terminals in the pavilion are connected to the line, but if their communication was interrupted, for example, ticket sales and payment for merchandise sales would stop, and the audience would have to wait anyway until communication was restored. Solving this problem and improving the quality of services for spectators became the primary goal of the local 5G introduction.
In 2023, Nagano City and NAGANO SPIRIT Inc. formed a consortium with Japan Radio and the EXIO Group to introduce local 5G to White Ring through the aforementioned "Regional Digital Infrastructure Utilization Promotion Project (Subsidy Project). As of fall 2024, when we interviewed the company, it was using local 5G communications to connect business terminals used for mobile ticketing, merchandise sales, and food and beverage offerings to provide services.

Local 5G Applications in the White Ring

Source: NAGANO SPIRIT

Has the introduction of local 5G solved the aforementioned issues?
Local 5G is used as a dedicated service line for the operator. With the introduction of local 5G, communication conditions have become much more stable, and the situation where service processing stops and customers are kept waiting has been completely eliminated. In particular, we believe that customers who visit the venue just before a game, during the time of day when spectator traffic is concentrated, can sense the improved level of service. (Mr. Watanabe)
While this means that there have been tangible results in improving service levels and audience satisfaction, according to Watanabe, that is not the only effect of the local 5G implementation.
We feel that the introduction of the system has been very effective in terms of streamlining our operations. Perhaps the people who feel the greatest benefit are the staff who are handling tickets. Before, we had to deal with 'no connection, no connection' only during the busiest times of the day, but now we are able to eliminate that problem."
The local 5G deployment to White Ring appears to have produced results in the form of increased productivity in the sports entertainment business.

Never stop moving forward to the next development.

Local 5G has achieved great success, but the next phase of the project has already begun in White Ring. The second phase of local 5G utilization is being demonstrated in the form of the wireless connection of various facilities used in B-League games and the provision of video images.
The B-League uses game clocks, scorecards, special lighting equipment, etc., but up until now these devices have been connected via wired connections. We will transfer this communication to local 5G and demonstrate whether the equipment can operate properly. (Mr. Watanabe)
B-League games are showcased, and lighting is an important part of the production. Since the White Ring is a Nagano City facility, NAGANO SPIRIT had to rent the arena for each Brave Warriors game, bring in the necessary equipment, and connect them with cables for preparation. If these pieces of equipment can be connected wirelessly via local 5G, not only will the preparation work be greatly reduced, but the flexibility of where lighting equipment can be installed will also be increased, which will be a great benefit to the venue operation.
We see great benefits not only in operational efficiency, but also in operational flexibility. This is also an advantage because it eliminates the need to run cables along the spectators' flow lines. However, if there is a problem with this equipment during an actual match, it cannot be undone, so the introduction of this system must be done with caution. Even if we can't implement it right away, we want to proceed step by step through demonstrations." (Mr. Watanabe)
Another thing we are trying to tackle is video distribution within the venue via local 5G. The first thing that can be considered is video transmission to the large screen in the main arena, but that is not the only thing that is envisioned.
We would like to be able to show real-time video of the games outside the arena as well, although that may be a little further down the road." Many of the Brave Warriors' spectators are families, and many of them watch the games with their children in their arms or on their backs. Some even go out of the arena into the aisle in the middle of a game to nurse their children. That is why we want to create a system that allows people to watch the games there as well. We hope to make it possible for people to watch the games in real time from anywhere in the facility, even while nursing their children.
Mr. Watanabe's words conveyed his commitment to meeting the needs of the audience and making local 5G useful from the audience's perspective.

Enhancing Disaster Prevention Functions Using Local 5G

We have heard that local 5G has had a significant implementation effect at the White Ring as a B-League game venue. So, what does the City of Nagano, the owner of the White Ring and the city that is working with NAGANO SPIRIT to introduce local 5G, expect from local 5G?
As an administration, it will be important for us to figure out how to give back the benefits of local 5G to our citizens. Of course, there is the return of improved service levels during Brave Warriors games, but there are only about 30 days a year when there are games, so the challenge for us is how to give back in the remaining 330 days." Atsushi Kanazawa, who is in charge of improving the functionality of the white ring in the Sports Division of the Nagano City Sports Department, says that this is the challenge that we have.

Atsushi Kanazawa, Sports Division, Sports Department, Nagano City

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the White Ring serves as the civic gymnasium for the city of Nagano, and according to Kanazawa, its occupancy rate is quite high.
"With sports organizations holding tournaments and various other competitions, the White Ring has become a facility that usually has a high occupancy rate. Our theme for the future will be how to provide and give back to the public the facilities that have been upgraded along with the higher functionality." (Mr. Kanazawa)
Various applications can be envisioned, and currently Nagano City and NAGANO SPIRIT are working together to enhance the disaster prevention function of the White Ring. Local 5G will be an important element here as well.
White Ring is expected to become a hub for people and goods in the event of a disaster. Even if that were to happen, we believe that if the management responds by utilizing local 5G, we will be able to achieve smoother communication of information and smooth operation as a base for people and goods. We operate with 4,000 spectators in attendance at games, so we should be able to draw on that experience in the event of a disaster." (Mr. Watanabe)
In times of disaster, carrier lines are often difficult to connect to, but if facility operators are connected via local 5G lines, they are less likely to be affected. The staff at the management side can use local 5G to quickly share and communicate information, and can also convey accurate information to evacuees in real time. It can be said that local 5G can be used to make evacuation centers smarter in the event of a disaster.
Kanazawa also has high hopes for local 5G utilization in times of disaster.
Local 5G's ability to withstand disasters is one of the most important features that Nagano City is looking forward to. If we can confirm such functionality through the demonstration in White Ring, there are several other large-scale facilities in the city, and we would like to deploy local 5G to them as well, leading to the creation of a disaster-resistant city as a whole." (Mr. Kanazawa)
In Nagano City, there are several large-scale facilities that are legacies of the Nagano Olympics, such as Big Hat, M-Wave, and the Olympic Stadium. These facilities will serve as evacuation centers for citizens in the event of a disaster, and if local 5G can be introduced there and an information network can be built to connect these facilities, it will not only help in the smooth operation of evacuation centers, but each facility can also be expected to function as an information hub that provides accurate information to evacuees. It seems that the local 5G introduction and utilization efforts in Whitling are the first step toward building such a resilient community.

To be more connected to the community and to be a base facility that contributes to the community

Efforts to increase the functionality of white rings using local 5G are continuing without stopping, but what kind of future vision do you envision beyond this development?
Mr. Watanabe is considering expanding the video offering.
For Brave Warriors, of course the matches are our main selling point, but we also want to show footage of things other than the matches, such as the players relaxing in the waiting room or having a small conversation there. This is the behind-the-scenes stuff that is normally invisible to spectators, so it should be attractive to fans as well. We'd like to distribute this as special content inside the venue, or even send it out outside the venue, as a way to get people interested in the team."
The staff or the athletes themselves will transmit these images using cameras connected to a local 5G high-speed leased line. Mr. Watanabe expects that this will create a new relationship between the teams and spectators, as well as with citizens outside the venue.
With local 5G coming in, the information that can be transmitted from the White Ring could change quite a bit in the future. Right now, the Brave Warriors players are filmed by our staff and posted on SNS, but in the future, we will be able to transmit video in a more realistic, on-the-spot style. If we can send out videos of things other than basketball games ourselves, people will be able to know in a very real way that we are doing this kind of thing as well. Our goal is to revitalize the city through sports, so this kind of communication is very important. We would like to realize this step by step." (Mr. Watanabe)

Tomoyuki Watanabe (left) and Atsushi Kanazawa (right)

We will continue to keep a close eye on local 5G utilization efforts in Whitling, which are not limited to smarter facility operations and services, but also seek to create new relationships with the community, and to revitalize and strengthen the community.

*This article was prepared as part of a project contracted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.