27-01-2014, 12:58 PM
From a tournament organiser's point of view, I don't really see how remote play is going to save any money. If anything it would probably cost more money.
It's hard to see how you'd be able to have significantly smaller premises to run an event if there were lots of people playing remotely. Each remote player would still have an opponent who was present, so there would still need to be a board set up. And there would need to be someone there to make the moves on behalf of the remote player, who would also need to be seated at the board. If anything, there would be less space, because screens/computers/cables etc would need to be positioned somewhere.
Furthermore, the person making the moves on behalf of the remote player would - I presume - be a volunteer. If they weren't, then the cost of paying them would render it pointless from a financial point of view for most people, irrespective of who paid it. If they were volunteers, then it's hard to see where they are all going to come from?
For these reasons, and probably quite a few more that I haven't yet thought of, I do not see how it's feasible to have remote play as a general option for any entrant. And quite frankly, very few people would want that anyway - as most players do actually enjoy attending an event and soaking up the atmosphere.
However, for some exceptional cases I think remote play can and should be offered. It's possible on a smaller scale (e.g. on only a few boards), and would make Chess even more inclusive than it already is. To fund it (or at least help) perhaps such players could pay a higher entry fee or opt out of being eligible to win a prize?
Just a few thoughts. I reserve the right to change my mind on any or all of them without notice. ;P But in any case, there cannot be any harm whatsoever in the WP looking into this. And I hope they find ways to overcome lots of the practical (and otherwise) problems that will inevitably crop up. I look forward to seeing what they have to say.
It's hard to see how you'd be able to have significantly smaller premises to run an event if there were lots of people playing remotely. Each remote player would still have an opponent who was present, so there would still need to be a board set up. And there would need to be someone there to make the moves on behalf of the remote player, who would also need to be seated at the board. If anything, there would be less space, because screens/computers/cables etc would need to be positioned somewhere.
Furthermore, the person making the moves on behalf of the remote player would - I presume - be a volunteer. If they weren't, then the cost of paying them would render it pointless from a financial point of view for most people, irrespective of who paid it. If they were volunteers, then it's hard to see where they are all going to come from?
For these reasons, and probably quite a few more that I haven't yet thought of, I do not see how it's feasible to have remote play as a general option for any entrant. And quite frankly, very few people would want that anyway - as most players do actually enjoy attending an event and soaking up the atmosphere.
However, for some exceptional cases I think remote play can and should be offered. It's possible on a smaller scale (e.g. on only a few boards), and would make Chess even more inclusive than it already is. To fund it (or at least help) perhaps such players could pay a higher entry fee or opt out of being eligible to win a prize?
Just a few thoughts. I reserve the right to change my mind on any or all of them without notice. ;P But in any case, there cannot be any harm whatsoever in the WP looking into this. And I hope they find ways to overcome lots of the practical (and otherwise) problems that will inevitably crop up. I look forward to seeing what they have to say.