Crain’s Chicago Business’ Danny Ecker reports that Chicago’s basketball and hockey franchises intend to streamine beer sales with the above device starting with tomorrow’s Game 1 of the Bulls/Bucks series.
Fans buy a prepaid card from a cashier next to the machines, which they can use to tap a sensor on the DraftServ unit. They grab a cup and then, like pumping gas, buyers pour as much beer as they want into their cup, with the final price deducted from their card.
Drinkers pay by the ounce, as opposed to the standard-size offerings at regular arena concession stands. They’ll have a choice of Bud Light and Budweiser at 42.5 cents per ounce, or Stella Artois and Goose Island at 47.5 cents per ounce.
Though Ecker points out “the DraftServ prepaid cards are designed to keep fans from being overserved, too, with a 40-ounce maximum dispensed over a set time increment,”, there’s no mention of whether or not anyone — human or machine is entrusted with making certain no one who is already inebriated is being further inebriated.
The invisible hand of the market will take care of that last concern. Eventually. After it helps the Bulls’ and Hawks’ owners count the money saved by replacing people with robots.