by Ed DeRosa

A homepage optimized for use on smartphones and a new iPhone application are a part of Equibase Co.’s initiative to make racing more popular through the use of mobile technology.

Equibase improved the navigation of its mobile site, which provides entries, results, carryovers, scratches, and changes for every track in North America, in part by increasing the real estate where users interact. The mobile site also now includes access to a full results chart and updates results faster.

“When Equibase began serving the racing information needs of the mobile web market in 2003, smartphones were still in their infancy,” Equibase President Hank Zeitlin said. “Today, their capabilities are so much greater. Our upgraded mobile site takes advantage of these new technologies by providing more detailed information and enhanced navigation so that horseplayers can continue to follow the sport in real time with an interface specifically optimized for today’s touch phones.”

In addition to a friendlier and more informative Equibase experience via web browser, iPhone users now have an application called Equibase Racing Yearbook to use to gather information about the year’s races that will include replays and search functions by horse, trainer, jockey, and racetrack. The database of races, horsemen, and track information will include all graded stakes plus listed stakes with implications on the roads to either the Triple Crown or the Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

“The Equibase Racing Yearbook is the latest innovation developed by Equibase to serve the rapidly growing mobile web market,” said Zeitlin. “By repackaging race day information that is presently available at equibase.com, incorporating full search capability and adding video race replays provided by Post Time Technologies, this app will not only serve the needs of existing fans, but help the sport to reach out and develop new fans as well.”

Zeitlin said on August 16 during a meeting with THOROUGHBRED TIMES to preview the new site and application that Equibase’s projected return on investment for the mobile upgrades is simply increased fan participation.

“This was a significant development effort, but racing needs things like this in a big way,” Zeitlin said. “We want to use our central database to bring info to fans and get racing to be more competitive with other sports in that way.”

The iPhone application is available via Apple Inc.’s iTunes. Equibase is also developing its Racing Yearbook application for the Android operating system, but that release is not expected until early 2011.

“We had to make choices,” Zeitlin said. “The mobile site, for instance, is optimized for iPhone and iPod instead of iPad. Right now our numbers show most of our users access the mobile site with an iPhone but that Android is the fastest-growing operating system.”

Equibase is a partnership between the Jockey Club and Thoroughbred Racing Associations of North America. The Jockey Club recently released a mobile site for its registry users. Other racing-related organizations with iPhone applications on the market include Arqana Sales, Daily Racing Form, and Racing Post.

Ed DeRosa is news editor of Thoroughbred Times