One of the most megalomaniac projects related to technology has taken place that from ‘The Sphere’, a giant ball consisting of millions of LED screens installed in Texas. Famous in Spain and throughout the world, this huge construction has attracted the attention of many people who are thinking about copying its footsteps. England appear to be next, however There seem to be voices against it.

Based on Business Insider, London’s mayor’s office has completely ruled it out the idea of ​​building a megasphere is similar in the city. Mayor Sadiq Khan has made his opposition clear by blocking a proposal submitted by the company Madison Square Garden Entertainment for the construction of a sphere similar to ‘The Sphere’.

The main argument used by Khan’s cabinet speaks of “significant light intrusion” against nearby residents. This means that building a ball like this will cause serious problems for the surrounding residents. And that’s not the only reason, because ‘The Sphere’ is not an example of profitability.

London will not have its own scope

It was the Mayor’s team that declared its blockade of the proposal in a letter addressed to the company Madison Square Garden Entertainment. In it they harshly criticized the idea, and called the construct “inappropriate,” among other names. They asserted that the ball, with its “large shape”, would be “dominant and inappropriate”.

Furthermore: the letter states that the ball concept itself not only requires very intensive energy use, but also does not meet high sustainability standards and is not a good, sustainable design. It is reasonable to think that a megasphere similar to Texas would require enormous energy expenditures for the city.

Khan’s team has explained to the media Business Insider that the planning application for the sphere (called the MSG Sphere) would not have a positive impact on residents in London. Quite the opposite; a spokesperson explained that “the Mayor has seen independent evidence showing that the current proposals will have an unacceptable negative impact on local residents.”

And we have to remember that this is the same company that gives life, precisely, to the Las Vegas neighborhood. More specifically, the idea was initiated by the owner of the entity that owns Madison Square Garden, Madison Square Garden Entertainment. London’s proposal is very similar; place a dome almost 100 meters high which will also be used as a music stage.

Sphere Entertainment’s press officer said they were disappointed with the decision, and they would explore bringing this idea to other cities. “There are many forward-thinking cities looking to bring this technology to their communities. We will focus on them,” explained a spokesperson.

Profitability issues

Megalomaniac projects do not seem profitable at all due to their high costs. And if we base ourselves on the completed projects in Las Vegas, we will see that the luminosity problem is not the most serious problem. Based on Daily Mail, the company has reported it operating losses of nearly $100 million.

Let’s remember that project costs 2.3 billion dollars. This loss was reported in the results of the fiscal quarter ended September 30, which listed this multi-million dollar loss. The company did not hesitate to attribute these expenses to “general corporate expenses, expenses related to ‘Sphere Studios'”, among other things, such as costs related to the operation of the venue.

At this time, The Sphere has been generated $4.1 million in event revenue, only hosted two shows in it. On the other hand, 2.6 million dollars was generated from advertising licenses. Even though it is true that the venue opened several weeks ago, the results were less than encouraging, so it is natural to assume that London does not want something similar to happen at a similar event.

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