With Surface Sidelined By Patriots Coach Belichick - No Word On Whether Microsoft CEO Will Make It Right

With New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick set to do battle with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday without his Microsoft Surface tablet, there is no word from Microsoft on whether it will attempt to bring the legendary coach back on the Surface team.

After repeated breakdowns with using a Microsoft Surface tablet—a previously publicized incident occurred at the Patriots-Broncos AFC title game in January— Belichick said Tuesday he "just can't take it anymore" and is now "done with the tablets."

The incident comes just as Microsoft is rumored to be preparing the launch of one or more devices in the Surface line during an Oct. 26 event.

[Related Video: Here's The Surface Tablet The Patriots Coach Hates So Much]

The negative attention for the Surface brand is also ironic, given that Microsoft actually paid $400 million to the NFL in 2013 to put the tablets into the hands of coaches and players on the sidelines.

The five-year deal has made Microsoft "The Official Sideline Technology Sponsor of the NFL."

Solution providers contacted by CRN said It remains uncertain what piece of the technology equation has been dogging Belichick's tablet usage during games.

What's clear is the Surface brand is taking a hit.

Microsoft, for its part, declined to say Wednesday whether CEO Satya Nadella will deploy a team of experts to fix the issues that have Belichick fed up with the tablet -- instead referring CRN to a previously released statement.

Microsoft's statement on Tuesday had defended the reliability of its Surface tablets--but stopped short of saying how, or even whether, the company planned to assist with addressing the specific issue raised by Belichick.

Gary Berzack, CTO and COO of New York-based solution provider eTribeca, told CRN on Wednesday it's challenging to pinpoint exactly what is causing the problems for Belichick given the abundance of network and communications equipment in use, in addition to the tablets themselves.

Solution providers such as eTribeca could be called in to collect sensor data and determine whether the problem is correctable, he noted. But given all of the stakeholders involved--the NFL, the teams, the stadium and the technology vendors--it's also difficult to determine who should pay for the work of assessing and correcting the situation, Berzack said.

"It's a hard resource and dollar number to absorb--to pay for specialized engineers and specialized equipment, in a permanent or semi-permanent situation, for a single task," Berzack said.

As far as Microsoft goes, there's likely a "series of Microsoft engineers working on [the Surface NFL initiative], who are specialized in understanding how to build and supplement this solution," Berzack said. "I would not be surprised if that team has to triage themselves across all of the NFL teams—they're not dedicated to each NFL stadium or team."

Microsoft on Wednesday referred CRN to the NFL for further questions beyond its Tuesday statement.

The NFL said in a statement that "Microsoft is an integral, strategic partner of the NFL"--and that implementing Surface "has increased the efficiency and speed of collaboration between coaches and players to an all-time high."

"Within our complex environment, many factors can affect the performance of a particular technology either related to or outside of our partner’s solutions. We continue to work with all of our partners to ensure the best systems are in place to most effectively assist the clubs in the execution of their game plan," the NFL said.

The NFL did not respond to a query about whether additional technical assistance might be available for the Patriots game on Sunday. Representatives for the Patriots did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Belichick had called his move to stop using tablets a "personal decision," and pledged to use printed photos of plays on the sidelines instead.

"I just have given it my best shot. I've tried to work through the process. But it just doesn't work for me, and that's because there's no consistency" to using a tablet, Belichick said.

In Microsoft's statement Tuesday, the company had said, "We respect Coach Belichick's decision, but stand behind the reliability of Surface. We continue to receive positive feedback on having Surface devices on the sidelines from coaches, players and team personnel across the league."

"In the instances where sideline issues are reported in NFL games, we work closely with the NFL to quickly address and resolve," Microsoft said.