Club desires more flexibility and tighter integration of systems for better fan experience
Tickets.com and Major League Baseball’s Baltimore Orioles have signed a long term contract for the use of the ProVenue ticketing platform for all events at the team’s iconic Oriole Park at Camden Yards ballpark.
The Orioles are eager to be part of the leading-edge technologies that Tickets.com has developed with the ProVenue platform. Tickets.com were pioneers in Mobile Ticketing, being the first ticketing company to allow fans to search for, purchase and have tickets delivered to a mobile device. Recently, Major League Baseball Advanced Media and Tickets.com took mobile options a step further by being first adopters of Apple’s Passbook application for iPhones.
“It is important that the Orioles utilize new and emerging technologies to benefit our customers,” says Greg Bader, Orioles Vice President of Communications and Marketing. “We have very sophisticated fans in our region, and they request that we deliver content to them in the latest manner. This includes access to their game tickets and will extend to other programs we will be launching in the future such as loyalty and stored value programs. ProVenue and Tickets.com are positioned to help us get there quickly.”
Tickets.com now provides ticketing solutions for 16 teams in Major League Baseball, as well as prominent sports and live entertainment organizations around the world.
Read the complete release here.
Showing posts with label mobile ticketing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mobile ticketing. Show all posts
Monday, December 3, 2012
Friday, July 22, 2011
Planning Your Mobile Image
By Ed Gow, VP Sales & Marketing, Tickets.com
According to the International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry, at the end of 2010 there were 302.9M wireless subscriber connections in the U.S. Considering that the population of the U.S. at that time was 308.7M, the market penetration for wireless devices is simply staggering. Add to that the fact that the percentage of wireless-only U.S. households is climbing at 26.6% and most importantly, the revelation that the sale of smartphones has now eclipsed the sale of PCs.
What does all of this mean for the ticketing industry? Well, simply put, venues, arts organizations, attractions and teams must consider their mobile image when developing marketing plans and sales strategies. Organizations can no longer be satisfied with how their websites look, they must now take into account how the experience translates to a mobile user. Print at home is great, but mobile delivery must be an option …nothing short of an end to end mobile ticketing experience will do the trick.
So do you develop an app or a mobile site? That’s really up to you, but with the number of available apps growing on a daily basis, users are becoming much more selective about what they choose to download.
My two cents? Build a mobile site that can be integrated into an app.
Friday, July 2, 2010
MLB teams step up to the mobile ticketing plate
13 major league baseball teams let fans purchase seats using mobile devices.
Internet Retailer
Brian Rogal
With m-commerce picking up steam, concert halls and sports teams want in on the action (and sales). Thirteen major league baseball teams including the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and the Oakland A’s, recently began allowing fans to purchase seats using such hand-held devices as the BlackBerry or iPhone.
The teams, which all operate mobile sites on technology provided by Tickets.com Inc., decided to begin offering ticket purchasing on their sites within the past year to take advantage of strong growth in traffic, says Sheri Fink, head of e-commerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com.
Steve Fanelli, executive director of ticket sales for the Oakland A’s, says his team sends about 1,000 bar-coded tickets for each game to fans’ mobile phones, though so far only a few hundred of those tickets are also purchased on a phone, with most of the rest bought through a PC. When a fan arrives at the ballpark with a mobile phone ticket, a gate keeper scans the bar code on his mobile phone screen.
Fanelli adds that, even though he expects mobile commerce ticket sales to grow slowly, it holds a lot of long-term promise. “It’s not huge right now, and it’s certainly not taking over as the dominant channel to purchase tickets,” he says. “Most people still prefer to go to a regular PC or use cash.”
However, he believes it’s important to offer the option, pointing out that when baseball clubs first began selling tickets over the web it took several years before customers got comfortable with that method.
Before the A’s and the other teams began offering mobile ticket sales, Tickets.com had already been providing each team with its own mobile web site through the company’s branded mobile web site technology, ProVenueMobile, developed in partnership with Usablenet Inc., an m-commerce technology vendor. Usablenet translates the information sent to and from the mobile devices.
Several years ago, the teams began offering game schedules, player statistics and other bits of information on their mobile sites, and many eventually added the more advanced features offered by Tickets.com, such as streaming video. But in the past year, traffic on the teams’ mobile sites doubled. That’s when the teams decided to let fans purchase tickets via the mobile sites, Fink says.
Baseball fans do not need to download an app onto their mobile device to buy tickets, Fink adds. They just get on their team’s mobile site, even if it’s a few minutes before game time, register an account, select the seats they want and pay with a credit card. They then receive a ticket on the mobile device in the form of a bar code.
All major league teams already used bar code scanners for traditional paper tickets, and making them usable for mobile devices required only minor upgrades, Fanelli says. He declined to provide costs related to developing the mobile sites, noting that each team has different contractual terms with Tickets.com to provide a variety of services, with the mobile option being just a small part.
Fanelli says the A’s have pushed mobile technology harder than most teams, and began experimenting with sending bar-coded tickets to mobile devices as early as 2006, although it was not until this April that customers could complete a purchase.
He adds that he believes as mobile devices like Apple Inc.’s iPhones and those that run on Google Inc.’s Android operating system get less cumbersome and more powerful, purchasing tickets via a mobile device will eventually become as standard as web-ticketing is now.
Internet Retailer
Brian Rogal
With m-commerce picking up steam, concert halls and sports teams want in on the action (and sales). Thirteen major league baseball teams including the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and the Oakland A’s, recently began allowing fans to purchase seats using such hand-held devices as the BlackBerry or iPhone.
The teams, which all operate mobile sites on technology provided by Tickets.com Inc., decided to begin offering ticket purchasing on their sites within the past year to take advantage of strong growth in traffic, says Sheri Fink, head of e-commerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com.
Steve Fanelli, executive director of ticket sales for the Oakland A’s, says his team sends about 1,000 bar-coded tickets for each game to fans’ mobile phones, though so far only a few hundred of those tickets are also purchased on a phone, with most of the rest bought through a PC. When a fan arrives at the ballpark with a mobile phone ticket, a gate keeper scans the bar code on his mobile phone screen.
Fanelli adds that, even though he expects mobile commerce ticket sales to grow slowly, it holds a lot of long-term promise. “It’s not huge right now, and it’s certainly not taking over as the dominant channel to purchase tickets,” he says. “Most people still prefer to go to a regular PC or use cash.”
However, he believes it’s important to offer the option, pointing out that when baseball clubs first began selling tickets over the web it took several years before customers got comfortable with that method.
Before the A’s and the other teams began offering mobile ticket sales, Tickets.com had already been providing each team with its own mobile web site through the company’s branded mobile web site technology, ProVenueMobile, developed in partnership with Usablenet Inc., an m-commerce technology vendor. Usablenet translates the information sent to and from the mobile devices.
Several years ago, the teams began offering game schedules, player statistics and other bits of information on their mobile sites, and many eventually added the more advanced features offered by Tickets.com, such as streaming video. But in the past year, traffic on the teams’ mobile sites doubled. That’s when the teams decided to let fans purchase tickets via the mobile sites, Fink says.
Baseball fans do not need to download an app onto their mobile device to buy tickets, Fink adds. They just get on their team’s mobile site, even if it’s a few minutes before game time, register an account, select the seats they want and pay with a credit card. They then receive a ticket on the mobile device in the form of a bar code.
All major league teams already used bar code scanners for traditional paper tickets, and making them usable for mobile devices required only minor upgrades, Fanelli says. He declined to provide costs related to developing the mobile sites, noting that each team has different contractual terms with Tickets.com to provide a variety of services, with the mobile option being just a small part.
Fanelli says the A’s have pushed mobile technology harder than most teams, and began experimenting with sending bar-coded tickets to mobile devices as early as 2006, although it was not until this April that customers could complete a purchase.
He adds that he believes as mobile devices like Apple Inc.’s iPhones and those that run on Google Inc.’s Android operating system get less cumbersome and more powerful, purchasing tickets via a mobile device will eventually become as standard as web-ticketing is now.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Tickets.com to Present at Internet Retailer's Mobile Commerce Conference
The American consumer's mindset is changing. Consumers are increasingly relying on mobile phones not only as phones but also as devices for obtaining information and conducting transactions—be that buying movie tickets, purchasing merchandise or checking flight times.
Internet Retailer's first annual Mobile Commerce Forum: Mobile Commerce Enters the Mainstream, will present a cross-industry view of how marketers are driving business results using the mobile channel. The conference agenda will bring together different industries so they can learn from each other and travel this fast-rising growth curve together. Featuring ticket sellers, travel and hospitality companies, retailers, and entertainment and digital service providers, it will present speakers who will share their experience in developing and executing successful mobile commerce initiatives.
Sheri Fink, eCommerce & Strategic Alliances, will be speaking on behalf of Tickets.com to share the experience of developing the Tickets.com mobile site and the unique challenges the team faced throughout the mobilization process. The conference will present a cross-industry view of how marketers are driving business results using the mobile channel.
Designing for mobile
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Two schools exist when it comes to web page presentation on mobile—design a mobile site separate from the e-commerce site or let the mobile device reflect the e-commerce design. Whichever approach a marketer adopts, the m-commerce and e-commerce teams need to know the pluses and minuses of each. This session will explore the strategies of two mobile players who will explain why they made the choices they did, and help attendees know which approach is right for their own products and services. It also will feature a usability expert who will look at how to test to make sure the site is displaying properly and how to test navigability and usability of a mobile design and of e-commerce designs adapted for mobile.
Learn more >
Internet Retailer's first annual Mobile Commerce Forum: Mobile Commerce Enters the Mainstream, will present a cross-industry view of how marketers are driving business results using the mobile channel. The conference agenda will bring together different industries so they can learn from each other and travel this fast-rising growth curve together. Featuring ticket sellers, travel and hospitality companies, retailers, and entertainment and digital service providers, it will present speakers who will share their experience in developing and executing successful mobile commerce initiatives.
Sheri Fink, eCommerce & Strategic Alliances, will be speaking on behalf of Tickets.com to share the experience of developing the Tickets.com mobile site and the unique challenges the team faced throughout the mobilization process. The conference will present a cross-industry view of how marketers are driving business results using the mobile channel.
Designing for mobile
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Two schools exist when it comes to web page presentation on mobile—design a mobile site separate from the e-commerce site or let the mobile device reflect the e-commerce design. Whichever approach a marketer adopts, the m-commerce and e-commerce teams need to know the pluses and minuses of each. This session will explore the strategies of two mobile players who will explain why they made the choices they did, and help attendees know which approach is right for their own products and services. It also will feature a usability expert who will look at how to test to make sure the site is displaying properly and how to test navigability and usability of a mobile design and of e-commerce designs adapted for mobile.
Learn more >
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Mobile Commerce Daily: Thirteen MLB teams launch mobile ticketing initiatives
Dan Butcher
Mobile Marketer
Major League Baseball Advanced Media’s Tickets.com has incorporated the ProVenueMobile ticketing service for all 13 of its Major League Baseball clients.
The 13 MLB clubs on the Tickets.com client roster using ProVenueMobile include the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals.
ProVenueMobile powers client-branded ticket transactions to be made 24/7 from select Internet-enabled mobile phones through each club’s mobile Web site, offering fans the option to digitally receive unique bar-coded tickets directly to their mobile phones.
Mobile Commerce Daily’s Dan Butcher interviewed Sheri Fink, head of ecommerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com, Costa Mesa, CA. Here is what she had to say:
What is the strategy behind the partnership between Tickets.com and the 13 MLB clubs?
Tickets.com is at the vanguard of mobile technologies and Web site mobilization in the ticketing and admissions service industry.
The MLB clubs are very sophisticated and have games that appeal to a mobile-savvy audience.
We are excited to offer these innovative services to 13 MLB clubs as well as a wide variety of other clients.
What challenges does ProVenueMobile address for these teams?
ProVenueMobile enables the teams to sell tickets up to the last minute. Fans want convenience when they are purchasing tickets and arriving at events.
ProVenueMobile provides the ultimate convenience—the ability to purchase tickets anytime, anywhere. It enables fans to buy tickets on the way to the ballpark using their mobile phones.
With Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery, fans can also have the tickets delivered directly to their mobile phones without ever having to wait in line at the box office or will call.
ProVenueMobile is open to all mobile phones without requiring fans to download an application.
This allows anyone with an Internet-enabled mobile phone to purchase the teams’ tickets quickly and conveniently just by going to their Web sites.
What demographic is this targeting?
Mobile ticketing appeals to a broad audience. We are currently working with the baseball teams to build a strong mobile fan base.
We have clients in the concert and performing arts industries who are using ProVenueMobile as well.
We are seeing mobile ticketing become especially popular with smartphone users.
How do baseball fans complete a ticket purchase via their mobile device?
Baseball fans simply go to their favorite team’s Web site using their mobile device and select the game for which they would like to buy tickets.
Then, they log into their MLB.com account where their customer information is stored or enter their payment information if they’re a first-time customer.
Fans select their preferred delivery option, make their purchase and then receive a confirmation of their transaction.
If Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery is chosen, the ticket bar codes are sent directly to their mobile phone via SMS or MMS.
The ProVenueMobile product contains all of the security features and added functionality available on the teams’ private-label Web sites.
This seamless compatibility with mobile phones enables fans to purchase tickets using promo codes, if applicable, on the teams’ mobile sites.
Mobile transactions are conducted in real time via the ticketing system, so reporting and ticket inventory display up-to-date numbers.
Why is mobile bar code ticketing better for fans and the teams?
Mobile bar code ticketing offers an improved fan experience by providing the ultimate convenience for ticket purchase and delivery. It saves fans time by enabling them to enter the ballpark without waiting in box office or will call lines.
And, because most people carry their mobile phones all the time, the potential for lost or misplaced tickets is greatly reduced.
From the teams’ perspective, mobile bar code ticketing improves the fan experience, enables the teams to sell tickets up to the last minute, reduces operational costs—due to having fewer people in will call and box office lines—and increases revenue by enabling fans to enter the ballpark earlier where they can begin purchasing food, beverages, and merchandise instead of waiting in line outside.
It is also better for the environment because it saves paper and reduces printing.
How are Tickets.com and the 13 teams getting the word out about this mobile ticketing platform?
Several of the teams are already advertising this new technology via in-stadium announcements, signage, Yearbook ads and programs.
MLBAM is working closely with the teams on messaging the mobile ticket purchase capabilities within the teams’ mobile Web sites.
Tickets.com is promoting it via PR and social media marketing on our company blog, Facebook, and Twitter.
Mobile Marketer
Major League Baseball Advanced Media’s Tickets.com has incorporated the ProVenueMobile ticketing service for all 13 of its Major League Baseball clients.
The 13 MLB clubs on the Tickets.com client roster using ProVenueMobile include the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals.
ProVenueMobile powers client-branded ticket transactions to be made 24/7 from select Internet-enabled mobile phones through each club’s mobile Web site, offering fans the option to digitally receive unique bar-coded tickets directly to their mobile phones.
Mobile Commerce Daily’s Dan Butcher interviewed Sheri Fink, head of ecommerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com, Costa Mesa, CA. Here is what she had to say:
What is the strategy behind the partnership between Tickets.com and the 13 MLB clubs?
Tickets.com is at the vanguard of mobile technologies and Web site mobilization in the ticketing and admissions service industry.
The MLB clubs are very sophisticated and have games that appeal to a mobile-savvy audience.
We are excited to offer these innovative services to 13 MLB clubs as well as a wide variety of other clients.
What challenges does ProVenueMobile address for these teams?
ProVenueMobile enables the teams to sell tickets up to the last minute. Fans want convenience when they are purchasing tickets and arriving at events.
ProVenueMobile provides the ultimate convenience—the ability to purchase tickets anytime, anywhere. It enables fans to buy tickets on the way to the ballpark using their mobile phones.
With Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery, fans can also have the tickets delivered directly to their mobile phones without ever having to wait in line at the box office or will call.
ProVenueMobile is open to all mobile phones without requiring fans to download an application.
This allows anyone with an Internet-enabled mobile phone to purchase the teams’ tickets quickly and conveniently just by going to their Web sites.
What demographic is this targeting?
Mobile ticketing appeals to a broad audience. We are currently working with the baseball teams to build a strong mobile fan base.
We have clients in the concert and performing arts industries who are using ProVenueMobile as well.
We are seeing mobile ticketing become especially popular with smartphone users.
How do baseball fans complete a ticket purchase via their mobile device?
Baseball fans simply go to their favorite team’s Web site using their mobile device and select the game for which they would like to buy tickets.
Then, they log into their MLB.com account where their customer information is stored or enter their payment information if they’re a first-time customer.
Fans select their preferred delivery option, make their purchase and then receive a confirmation of their transaction.
If Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery is chosen, the ticket bar codes are sent directly to their mobile phone via SMS or MMS.
The ProVenueMobile product contains all of the security features and added functionality available on the teams’ private-label Web sites.
This seamless compatibility with mobile phones enables fans to purchase tickets using promo codes, if applicable, on the teams’ mobile sites.
Mobile transactions are conducted in real time via the ticketing system, so reporting and ticket inventory display up-to-date numbers.
Why is mobile bar code ticketing better for fans and the teams?
Mobile bar code ticketing offers an improved fan experience by providing the ultimate convenience for ticket purchase and delivery. It saves fans time by enabling them to enter the ballpark without waiting in box office or will call lines.
And, because most people carry their mobile phones all the time, the potential for lost or misplaced tickets is greatly reduced.
From the teams’ perspective, mobile bar code ticketing improves the fan experience, enables the teams to sell tickets up to the last minute, reduces operational costs—due to having fewer people in will call and box office lines—and increases revenue by enabling fans to enter the ballpark earlier where they can begin purchasing food, beverages, and merchandise instead of waiting in line outside.
It is also better for the environment because it saves paper and reduces printing.
How are Tickets.com and the 13 teams getting the word out about this mobile ticketing platform?
Several of the teams are already advertising this new technology via in-stadium announcements, signage, Yearbook ads and programs.
MLBAM is working closely with the teams on messaging the mobile ticket purchase capabilities within the teams’ mobile Web sites.
Tickets.com is promoting it via PR and social media marketing on our company blog, Facebook, and Twitter.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Tickets.com Integrates its ProVenueMobile™ Product with all 13 of its Major League Baseball Clients
Tickets.com, a leading global provider of integrated ticketing solutions, announced that it has incorporated the ProVenueMobile™ ticketing service for all 13 of its Major League Baseball clients. ProVenueMobile enables full-circle, client-branded ticket transactions to be made 24/7 from select Internet-enabled mobile phones through the club’s mobilized web site.
ProVenueMobile marks a milestone in the admission services industry as the first mobile ticketing technology allowing fans to browse listings and make real-time purchases from their mobile phones without the need to “click to call” to finalize the transaction. To maximize the potential of ProVenueMobile, the MLB clubs that utilize the proprietary Tickets@Phone® technology will offer fans the option to digitally receive unique barcoded tickets directly and securely to their mobile phones for a 100% mobile—and green—ticket-buying experience.
"We are proud to be at the vanguard of website mobilization for Major League Baseball clubs,” said Derek Palmer, Chief Commercial Officer, Tickets.com. "Being able to offer our sports clients a product that enables brand differentiation and secure mobile ticketing from start to finish is essential in today’s increasingly digital marketplace. We understand that our MLB partners want to be at the forefront of this exciting new era in ticketing.”
The 13 MLB clubs on the Tickets.com client roster using ProVenueMobile include: Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, and Washington Nationals.
“It was really important for our organization, and the other teams that I’ve talked with, to offer a mobile ticketing platform to fans,” said Carl Rice, Senior Director, Facility Management & Information Technology, Chicago Cubs. “In addition to purchasing tickets from their mobile phones, fans can opt-in for team updates and other features. Sports enthusiasts are early adopters of new technologies, and they’ll find that ProVenueMobile offers a valuable way to stay connected to the team.”
ProVenueMobile marks a milestone in the admission services industry as the first mobile ticketing technology allowing fans to browse listings and make real-time purchases from their mobile phones without the need to “click to call” to finalize the transaction. To maximize the potential of ProVenueMobile, the MLB clubs that utilize the proprietary Tickets@Phone® technology will offer fans the option to digitally receive unique barcoded tickets directly and securely to their mobile phones for a 100% mobile—and green—ticket-buying experience.
"We are proud to be at the vanguard of website mobilization for Major League Baseball clubs,” said Derek Palmer, Chief Commercial Officer, Tickets.com. "Being able to offer our sports clients a product that enables brand differentiation and secure mobile ticketing from start to finish is essential in today’s increasingly digital marketplace. We understand that our MLB partners want to be at the forefront of this exciting new era in ticketing.”
The 13 MLB clubs on the Tickets.com client roster using ProVenueMobile include: Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, and Washington Nationals.
“It was really important for our organization, and the other teams that I’ve talked with, to offer a mobile ticketing platform to fans,” said Carl Rice, Senior Director, Facility Management & Information Technology, Chicago Cubs. “In addition to purchasing tickets from their mobile phones, fans can opt-in for team updates and other features. Sports enthusiasts are early adopters of new technologies, and they’ll find that ProVenueMobile offers a valuable way to stay connected to the team.”
Friday, June 4, 2010
Ticketing Industry News: Smartphone use drives mobile ticketing
Sports Business Journal
By ERIC FISHER
Staff writer
Ticketing thus far has been slower than many other industries to adapt to today’s lightning-quick, “there’s an app for that” digital world. But full end-to-end mobile ticketing is now rapidly becoming a widespread reality.
Tickets.com, which late last summer introduced its ProVenueMobile product with the Oakland A’s, has since expanded the program to all 13 of its regular-season MLB clients. The program builds in part off its prior Tickets@Phone effort in which bar codes good for entry into a facility are e-mailed to a ticket purchaser’s smartphone. ProVenueMobile goes significantly further by also providing real-time mobile search, seat selection and payment.
Ticketmaster provides similar functionality for BlackBerry devices, as the industry giant holds an official partnership with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Inc. StubHub, the dominant player in secondary ticketing, is putting the finishing touches on its own iPhone application. And a fast-growing collection of smaller primary and secondary ticket sellers, such as Arizona-based eSeats, similarly are embracing mobile-based ticket purchasing.
Providers of mobile ticketing systems earn their revenue from a variety of sources, such as convenience charges on purchases or revenue sharing with client teams.
“We love mobile and we’re huge believers in it,” said Derek Palmer, Tickets.com chief commercial officer. “By allowing fans to complete an entire transaction anywhere, we think this is going to spur a lot more last-minute purchasing. What’s basically happened is that we’ve opened up a major new retail sales channel, and one that people have constantly with them.”
The spike in mobile ticketing owes in part to surging smartphone sales, as well as consumers’ increasing comfort with making purchases over the devices. Market research firm Gartner recently estimated that 54.3 million smartphones were sold worldwide during the first quarter of 2010, a 49 percent increase over the first quarter a year ago. And smartphones are assuming a greater percentage of all mobile phone sales, with the devices representing 17.3 percent of all mobile unit purchases, up from 13.6 percent a year ago.
Within those rising numbers are particularly meteoric sales for iPhone and Android devices, each of which are posting triple-digit percentage sales increases compared with a year ago.
The Mobile Marketing Association earlier this month released similar research estimating that one in five U.S. mobile phone owners have used their device for a mobile-based purchase in the last month, a percentage certain to rise. And those figures are much higher for smartphone owners, as more than half of iPhone owners and 34 percent of BlackBerry owners have bought content through their devices, also suggesting greater user comfort with mobile as a purchasing platform.
Utilization of mobile ticketing thus far predictably has been small. In early tests of Tickets.com’s ProVenueMobile system, purchasing over the mobile platform has represented less than 1 percent of available single-game tickets. But a quick escalation to at least mid-single-digit percentages is anticipated.
Mobile ticketing also is not just a consumer-facing application, either. Veritix for several years has used mobile authentication units that ticket agents wear over their shoulder to swipe electronic fan identification such as credit cards or driver’s licenses to help enable their digital ticket platform.
“We as a culture are still a little slow to let go of our physical tickets, but we’re anticipating a very quick ramp-up into more all-digital events and all-digital venues,” said Sam Gerace, Veritix chief executive.
By ERIC FISHER
Staff writer
Ticketing thus far has been slower than many other industries to adapt to today’s lightning-quick, “there’s an app for that” digital world. But full end-to-end mobile ticketing is now rapidly becoming a widespread reality.
Tickets.com, which late last summer introduced its ProVenueMobile product with the Oakland A’s, has since expanded the program to all 13 of its regular-season MLB clients. The program builds in part off its prior Tickets@Phone effort in which bar codes good for entry into a facility are e-mailed to a ticket purchaser’s smartphone. ProVenueMobile goes significantly further by also providing real-time mobile search, seat selection and payment.
Ticketmaster provides similar functionality for BlackBerry devices, as the industry giant holds an official partnership with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Inc. StubHub, the dominant player in secondary ticketing, is putting the finishing touches on its own iPhone application. And a fast-growing collection of smaller primary and secondary ticket sellers, such as Arizona-based eSeats, similarly are embracing mobile-based ticket purchasing.
Providers of mobile ticketing systems earn their revenue from a variety of sources, such as convenience charges on purchases or revenue sharing with client teams.
“We love mobile and we’re huge believers in it,” said Derek Palmer, Tickets.com chief commercial officer. “By allowing fans to complete an entire transaction anywhere, we think this is going to spur a lot more last-minute purchasing. What’s basically happened is that we’ve opened up a major new retail sales channel, and one that people have constantly with them.”
The spike in mobile ticketing owes in part to surging smartphone sales, as well as consumers’ increasing comfort with making purchases over the devices. Market research firm Gartner recently estimated that 54.3 million smartphones were sold worldwide during the first quarter of 2010, a 49 percent increase over the first quarter a year ago. And smartphones are assuming a greater percentage of all mobile phone sales, with the devices representing 17.3 percent of all mobile unit purchases, up from 13.6 percent a year ago.
Within those rising numbers are particularly meteoric sales for iPhone and Android devices, each of which are posting triple-digit percentage sales increases compared with a year ago.
The Mobile Marketing Association earlier this month released similar research estimating that one in five U.S. mobile phone owners have used their device for a mobile-based purchase in the last month, a percentage certain to rise. And those figures are much higher for smartphone owners, as more than half of iPhone owners and 34 percent of BlackBerry owners have bought content through their devices, also suggesting greater user comfort with mobile as a purchasing platform.
Utilization of mobile ticketing thus far predictably has been small. In early tests of Tickets.com’s ProVenueMobile system, purchasing over the mobile platform has represented less than 1 percent of available single-game tickets. But a quick escalation to at least mid-single-digit percentages is anticipated.
Mobile ticketing also is not just a consumer-facing application, either. Veritix for several years has used mobile authentication units that ticket agents wear over their shoulder to swipe electronic fan identification such as credit cards or driver’s licenses to help enable their digital ticket platform.
“We as a culture are still a little slow to let go of our physical tickets, but we’re anticipating a very quick ramp-up into more all-digital events and all-digital venues,” said Sam Gerace, Veritix chief executive.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
StubHub Launches Free Ticket Application for iPhone and iPod Touch Devices
TicketNews
StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, today announced that a StubHub ticket purchasing application is now available on the Apple App Store. The StubHub iPhone and iPod Touch application provides fans with the freedom to access and search the world's largest inventory of secondary market sporting, concert and theater tickets -- and make purchases -- anyplace, anytime. The application provides a mobile conduit into StubHub's dynamic marketplace where more than six million tickets are available, enabling fans to shop with confidence in a safe, convenient and guaranteed environment.
The StubHub application incorporates many of the same popular features available on the StubHub website, including access to familiar search and purchasing functionality, seat maps, detailed ticket listings, quantity and pricing filters and more. The application's navigation and user interface is tailored specifically for Apple's unique touch screen format, providing fans with a convenient, simple and intuitive way to purchase tickets while on the go, in many cases right up to the time of the event.
In addition, fans using the StubHub application will enjoy the same FanProtect Guarantee and award-winning customer service that is offered on the StubHub website, attributes that have made StubHub the "go to" source for live entertainment event tickets for millions of fans across North America.
"StubHub is all about providing choice, and access for fans," said Ray Elias, Director of Marketing for StubHub. "By extending our service and providing a rich experience in the mobile arena we are taking another step in that direction. We will continue to innovate in this space."
The StubHub application is ideal for last minute planners and travelers, with features that showcase upcoming live events based on the user's location or by their cities of choice. The application also provides social interactivity functions, enabling fans to interact directly with friends and family on ticket purchasing decisions by sending event and ticket details to a variety of email programs, Facebook and Twitter. In addition, the application integrates seamlessly with iTunes, enabling fans to sync their favorite artists to the application in order to monitor and easily identify when their top events of interest are coming to town. Finally, the application allows users to tag their favorite artists or teams for quick navigation and access.
Fans can download the StubHub iPhone and iPod Touch application for free on the Apple App Store. The secure application protects users' personal information and enables fans to purchase tickets using their existing StubHub account, via PayPal, or by saving their credit card information within the application.
"The launch of the StubHub app builds on eBay's momentum in mobile commerce and expands our ever-growing portfolio of mobile applications," said Steve Yankovich, vice president of mobile for eBay Inc. "eBay Inc. offers more choice in ecommerce formats for sellers and buyers than any other online shopping destination. With the new StubHub app, we give consumers instant access to a wide selection of sought-after tickets right from the mobile phone."
The introduction of the StubHub app for the iPhone expands eBay Inc.'s mobile offerings. Earlier this year, eBay released an eBay app for iPad and two new apps for the iPhone: eBay Selling and eBay Classifieds. As a global leader in m-commerce, eBay Inc. recognizes that buyers and sellers are increasingly turning to mobile devices for their shopping needs. eBay Inc.'s mobile applications are available to millions of iPhone, BlackBerry and Android users in more than 190 countries and eight languages.
StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, today announced that a StubHub ticket purchasing application is now available on the Apple App Store. The StubHub iPhone and iPod Touch application provides fans with the freedom to access and search the world's largest inventory of secondary market sporting, concert and theater tickets -- and make purchases -- anyplace, anytime. The application provides a mobile conduit into StubHub's dynamic marketplace where more than six million tickets are available, enabling fans to shop with confidence in a safe, convenient and guaranteed environment.
The StubHub application incorporates many of the same popular features available on the StubHub website, including access to familiar search and purchasing functionality, seat maps, detailed ticket listings, quantity and pricing filters and more. The application's navigation and user interface is tailored specifically for Apple's unique touch screen format, providing fans with a convenient, simple and intuitive way to purchase tickets while on the go, in many cases right up to the time of the event.
In addition, fans using the StubHub application will enjoy the same FanProtect Guarantee and award-winning customer service that is offered on the StubHub website, attributes that have made StubHub the "go to" source for live entertainment event tickets for millions of fans across North America.
"StubHub is all about providing choice, and access for fans," said Ray Elias, Director of Marketing for StubHub. "By extending our service and providing a rich experience in the mobile arena we are taking another step in that direction. We will continue to innovate in this space."
The StubHub application is ideal for last minute planners and travelers, with features that showcase upcoming live events based on the user's location or by their cities of choice. The application also provides social interactivity functions, enabling fans to interact directly with friends and family on ticket purchasing decisions by sending event and ticket details to a variety of email programs, Facebook and Twitter. In addition, the application integrates seamlessly with iTunes, enabling fans to sync their favorite artists to the application in order to monitor and easily identify when their top events of interest are coming to town. Finally, the application allows users to tag their favorite artists or teams for quick navigation and access.
Fans can download the StubHub iPhone and iPod Touch application for free on the Apple App Store. The secure application protects users' personal information and enables fans to purchase tickets using their existing StubHub account, via PayPal, or by saving their credit card information within the application.
"The launch of the StubHub app builds on eBay's momentum in mobile commerce and expands our ever-growing portfolio of mobile applications," said Steve Yankovich, vice president of mobile for eBay Inc. "eBay Inc. offers more choice in ecommerce formats for sellers and buyers than any other online shopping destination. With the new StubHub app, we give consumers instant access to a wide selection of sought-after tickets right from the mobile phone."
The introduction of the StubHub app for the iPhone expands eBay Inc.'s mobile offerings. Earlier this year, eBay released an eBay app for iPad and two new apps for the iPhone: eBay Selling and eBay Classifieds. As a global leader in m-commerce, eBay Inc. recognizes that buyers and sellers are increasingly turning to mobile devices for their shopping needs. eBay Inc.'s mobile applications are available to millions of iPhone, BlackBerry and Android users in more than 190 countries and eight languages.
Friday, May 21, 2010
What a Girl Wants: More Mobile Shopping
Mashable.com
by Jolie O'Dell
Mobile shopping company miBuys conducted a survey of 1,600 women on mobile phones and discovered that the majority is indeed interested in mobile commerce.
94% responded that they use their phones to browse the mobile Web, sometimes even if at home or nearby a computer, and 70% expect their mobile Internet usage to increase in the future.
Most of these engaged mobile users acknowledged that they sometimes splurge on items and would be open to learning about discounts, deals, and even promotions on their phones.
Read more >
by Jolie O'Dell
Mobile shopping company miBuys conducted a survey of 1,600 women on mobile phones and discovered that the majority is indeed interested in mobile commerce.
94% responded that they use their phones to browse the mobile Web, sometimes even if at home or nearby a computer, and 70% expect their mobile Internet usage to increase in the future.
Most of these engaged mobile users acknowledged that they sometimes splurge on items and would be open to learning about discounts, deals, and even promotions on their phones.
Read more >
Monday, May 17, 2010
Tickets.com In the News: Tickets.com, Txtstation team up for event text-based promotions
DMNews
Dianna Dilworth
E-commerce ticket vendor Tickets.com has partnered with mobile marketing firm Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing to allow client venues and sports franchises to run mobile campaigns at live events.
Tickets.com has offered mobile purchasing and mobile barcoded tickets for four years to clients, including the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs baseball clubs. The partnership will extend Txtstation's mobile marketing tools to these clients, who will be able to use text-based campaigns during events to drive consumer engagement.
“This is a natural extension in the mobile marketing space,” said Sheri Fink, e-commerce and strategic alliances director at Tickets.com. “We think it would be very useful in the sporting industry and in concert arenas for marketing at events.”
Fink added that venues can use live text campaigns to build their marketing lists.
“Right now, mobile tickets are not as significant as our sales online or through the call center, but we expect that mobile tickets will grow dramatically in the next couple of years,” said Fink.
Using the service, venues could allow consumers to text to vote on which song an artist should play or to get a discount at a vendor's booth, for example.
The marketer's goal at an event is usually to drive engagement, increase food and merchandise sales and create a social environment, said Julie Ask, VP and principal analyst at Forrester Research. “Venues are fun because there is an opportunity for a direct response and a direct interaction with the audience.”
Forrester estimates that only 2% to 3% of attendants participate in text campaigns at events, but Ask said that number is growing.
“More and more venues are doing this, but engagement depends on how well the promotion is marketed within the stadium and what the incentive is,” she said. “Coupon-based incentives work well if they are good. If you are giving me 10 cents off a $4 hotdog, that's not as good as buy-one-get-one-free.”
Dianna Dilworth
E-commerce ticket vendor Tickets.com has partnered with mobile marketing firm Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing to allow client venues and sports franchises to run mobile campaigns at live events.
Tickets.com has offered mobile purchasing and mobile barcoded tickets for four years to clients, including the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs baseball clubs. The partnership will extend Txtstation's mobile marketing tools to these clients, who will be able to use text-based campaigns during events to drive consumer engagement.
“This is a natural extension in the mobile marketing space,” said Sheri Fink, e-commerce and strategic alliances director at Tickets.com. “We think it would be very useful in the sporting industry and in concert arenas for marketing at events.”
Fink added that venues can use live text campaigns to build their marketing lists.
“Right now, mobile tickets are not as significant as our sales online or through the call center, but we expect that mobile tickets will grow dramatically in the next couple of years,” said Fink.
Using the service, venues could allow consumers to text to vote on which song an artist should play or to get a discount at a vendor's booth, for example.
The marketer's goal at an event is usually to drive engagement, increase food and merchandise sales and create a social environment, said Julie Ask, VP and principal analyst at Forrester Research. “Venues are fun because there is an opportunity for a direct response and a direct interaction with the audience.”
Forrester estimates that only 2% to 3% of attendants participate in text campaigns at events, but Ask said that number is growing.
“More and more venues are doing this, but engagement depends on how well the promotion is marketed within the stadium and what the incentive is,” she said. “Coupon-based incentives work well if they are good. If you are giving me 10 cents off a $4 hotdog, that's not as good as buy-one-get-one-free.”
Friday, May 7, 2010
Tickets.com In the News: MLB’s Tickets.com expands mobile services for clients
Mobile Commerce Daily
By Rimma Kats
Tickets.com has partnered with Txtstation to provide clients with the ability to interact with consumers in-venue via mobile.
Tickets.com clients can now interact with fans at games, concerts, events and broadcasts in real-time via SMS. Txtstation will help the company’s clients build brand identity via interactive promotions and mobile marketing.
“Our alliance strategy is to partner with best-in-class companies in order to make industry-leading technologies available to our clients,” said Sheri Fink, director of ecommerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com, Orange County, CA.
“Txtstation is a leader in the mobile marketing industry and is the ideal partner for Tickets.com so we can provide our clients with cost-effective mobile marketing tools in order to support their business needs,” she said.
“Tickets.com already offers clients mobile ticket purchase and mobile bar code delivery services and partnering with Txtstation is the natural next step by allowing us to add mobile marketing to our mobile offerings.”
Tickets.com, a subsidiary of Major League Baseball Advanced Media, provides event ticketing technologies and services for arts, entertainment and sports organizations worldwide.
Txtstation is a mobile marketing company specializing in sports and entertainment that lets broadcasters, event owners, sponsors and general media communicate with viewers or fans directly via mobile devices.
Paperless tickets
Txtstation will provide custom programs and graphics that will differentiate campaigns for each individual brand and client’s needs.
The real-time one-to-one dialogue with event attendees will let Tickets.com clients identify and capture data on all audience members who respond to a mobile call-to-action.
The information can be used for opt-in, ongoing mobile marketing, cross-promotions and other revenue-building initiatives.
Additionally, Txtstation’s service will deliver revenues from SMS, MMS and content downloads.
"Fans want convenience when they’re purchasing tickets and arriving at events,” Ms. Fink said. “Mobile ticketing provides the ultimate convenience - the ability to purchase tickets anytime, anywhere and have them delivered directly to a mobile device.
“It enables venues/teams to sell tickets up to the last minute and enables the fan to enter the venue without having to wait in a Will Call line to get their tickets.
“With more and more airlines adding mobile boarding pass technologies to their offerings, we expect mobile ticketing to continue to dramatically grow in popularity over the next few years as fans become accustomed to the convenience that mobile offers.”
Other ventures
In August, Tickets.com launched a mobile version of its consumer ticketing Web site called ProVenueMobile.
Users who visit the mobile site at http://mobile.tickets.com can complete a ticket transaction from their handset.
“Using mobile for interactive promotions and marketing during live events engages fans and helps clients strategically build their mobile fan base,” Ms. Fink said. “Venues/teams can identify and capture data on audience members that can be used for sending relevant mobile offers.
“For clients who have ProVenueMobile, fans can click through the mobile offer and purchase their tickets on their mobile phones,” she said. “This enables fans to choose to have the ticket delivered to their mobile phone - the ultimate in convenience.”
Rimma Kats is editorial assistant on Mobile Commerce Daily and Mobile Marketer. Reach her at rimma@mobilemarketer.com.
By Rimma Kats
Tickets.com has partnered with Txtstation to provide clients with the ability to interact with consumers in-venue via mobile.
Tickets.com clients can now interact with fans at games, concerts, events and broadcasts in real-time via SMS. Txtstation will help the company’s clients build brand identity via interactive promotions and mobile marketing.
“Our alliance strategy is to partner with best-in-class companies in order to make industry-leading technologies available to our clients,” said Sheri Fink, director of ecommerce and strategic alliances at Tickets.com, Orange County, CA.
“Txtstation is a leader in the mobile marketing industry and is the ideal partner for Tickets.com so we can provide our clients with cost-effective mobile marketing tools in order to support their business needs,” she said.
“Tickets.com already offers clients mobile ticket purchase and mobile bar code delivery services and partnering with Txtstation is the natural next step by allowing us to add mobile marketing to our mobile offerings.”
Tickets.com, a subsidiary of Major League Baseball Advanced Media, provides event ticketing technologies and services for arts, entertainment and sports organizations worldwide.
Txtstation is a mobile marketing company specializing in sports and entertainment that lets broadcasters, event owners, sponsors and general media communicate with viewers or fans directly via mobile devices.
Paperless tickets
Txtstation will provide custom programs and graphics that will differentiate campaigns for each individual brand and client’s needs.
The real-time one-to-one dialogue with event attendees will let Tickets.com clients identify and capture data on all audience members who respond to a mobile call-to-action.
The information can be used for opt-in, ongoing mobile marketing, cross-promotions and other revenue-building initiatives.
Additionally, Txtstation’s service will deliver revenues from SMS, MMS and content downloads.
"Fans want convenience when they’re purchasing tickets and arriving at events,” Ms. Fink said. “Mobile ticketing provides the ultimate convenience - the ability to purchase tickets anytime, anywhere and have them delivered directly to a mobile device.
“It enables venues/teams to sell tickets up to the last minute and enables the fan to enter the venue without having to wait in a Will Call line to get their tickets.
“With more and more airlines adding mobile boarding pass technologies to their offerings, we expect mobile ticketing to continue to dramatically grow in popularity over the next few years as fans become accustomed to the convenience that mobile offers.”
Other ventures
In August, Tickets.com launched a mobile version of its consumer ticketing Web site called ProVenueMobile.
Users who visit the mobile site at http://mobile.tickets.com can complete a ticket transaction from their handset.
“Using mobile for interactive promotions and marketing during live events engages fans and helps clients strategically build their mobile fan base,” Ms. Fink said. “Venues/teams can identify and capture data on audience members that can be used for sending relevant mobile offers.
“For clients who have ProVenueMobile, fans can click through the mobile offer and purchase their tickets on their mobile phones,” she said. “This enables fans to choose to have the ticket delivered to their mobile phone - the ultimate in convenience.”
Rimma Kats is editorial assistant on Mobile Commerce Daily and Mobile Marketer. Reach her at rimma@mobilemarketer.com.
Tickets.com Partner Spotlight: Mobiqa's Mobile Tickets Save Over 7,000 Miles of Paper for the Travel and Entertainment Industries
Mobiqa, a leading supplier of content optimised for mobile devices, celebrated Earth Day 2010 by helping its clients save over 7,000 miles of paper - 10 times the length of Britain - with paperless ticketing technology.
Mobiqa specialises in the worldwide delivery of barcoded tickets to mobile phones and also in building mobile websites. Mobiqa's clients include; the world's biggest airlines, entertainment ticketing providers, and cinema operators. Paper savings offered by the mobile channel are significant with Mobiqa alone set to save over 270,000 miles of paper in the next five years - the equivalent of 10 times the circumference of the earth.
Nick Rankin, CEO of Mobiqa, comments: "We are really proud to support the green credentials of our clients. Consumer adoption of mobile ticketing has helped many of our customers achieve considerable environmental savings."
Transport and entertainment organisations have chosen Mobiqa's paperless technology to offer a greener alternative to paper tickets while enhancing the consumer experience with a more convenient ticket delivery channel. Consumers purchasing tickets for a flight or event can opt for mobile delivery upon which, an SMS web-link or Email web-link is sent to their mobile. By accessing their ticket through this link, they are able to bypass check-in or box-office queues and head straight to their boarding gate or event where the barcode on their phone is scanned and validated.
Mobiqa continue to lead the way in mobile ticket technology and are a key enabler of mobile ticket delivery which is forecast by Juniper Research to reach 15 billion tickets by 2014. Mobiqa has experienced a 620% increase in mobile ticketing transactions over the past 12 months.
Mobiqa specialises in the worldwide delivery of barcoded tickets to mobile phones and also in building mobile websites. Mobiqa's clients include; the world's biggest airlines, entertainment ticketing providers, and cinema operators. Paper savings offered by the mobile channel are significant with Mobiqa alone set to save over 270,000 miles of paper in the next five years - the equivalent of 10 times the circumference of the earth.
Nick Rankin, CEO of Mobiqa, comments: "We are really proud to support the green credentials of our clients. Consumer adoption of mobile ticketing has helped many of our customers achieve considerable environmental savings."
Transport and entertainment organisations have chosen Mobiqa's paperless technology to offer a greener alternative to paper tickets while enhancing the consumer experience with a more convenient ticket delivery channel. Consumers purchasing tickets for a flight or event can opt for mobile delivery upon which, an SMS web-link or Email web-link is sent to their mobile. By accessing their ticket through this link, they are able to bypass check-in or box-office queues and head straight to their boarding gate or event where the barcode on their phone is scanned and validated.
Mobiqa continue to lead the way in mobile ticket technology and are a key enabler of mobile ticket delivery which is forecast by Juniper Research to reach 15 billion tickets by 2014. Mobiqa has experienced a 620% increase in mobile ticketing transactions over the past 12 months.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Tickets.com® Partners with Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing to Offer Clients Real-Time Mobile Interactivity with Fans
Tickets.com—a leading global provider of integrated, high-performance ticketing solutions—has announced a partnership with Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing, the recognized leader in mobile interactivity. The new alliance allows Tickets.com—the first and only ticketing company in the United States to offer both mobile ticket transactions and mobile barcode delivery—to expand and enhance the products and services it offers its clients in the explosively growing mobile realm.
By harnessing the power of mobile marketing from Txtstation, Tickets.com makes it possible for clients to dynamically interact with fans at games, concerts, events, and broadcasts in real-time. In addition to heightening the overall experience for consumers with interactive promotions and marketing, Txtstation capabilities will help Tickets.com clients strategically build brand identity with target markets with an engaged and captive audience in place. Custom programs and graphics will differentiate campaigns for each individual brand and client’s needs.
Additionally, real-time one-to-one dialogue with event attendees will allow Tickets.com clients to identify and capture data on potentially all audience members—not just ticket buyers—that can be used for opt-in, ongoing mobile marketing, cross promotions, and other revenue-building initiatives. Mobile marketing solutions from Txtstation also deliver incremental revenues from premium text messages (SMS), multi-media messages (MMS), and content downloads.
“Our alliance with Txtstation is in alignment with our strategy to partner with industry-leading companies who can provide exceptional technologies at competitive pricing,” said Sheri Fink, eCommerce and Strategic Alliances, Tickets.com. “We look forward to offering our clients real-time mobile interactivity with their fans.”
Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing (www.txtstation.com) has been providing mobile interactivity products and services to events, sports teams, music/entertainment properties, broadcasters, brands, and agencies since 2004. “We are excited about collaborating with Tickets.com to boost mobile interactivity for their clients,” said Michael Falato, Vice President of Sales & Business Development, Txtstation. “I think our companies are well matched in terms of commitment to technological innovation and customer service, and I see many opportunities for synergy in supporting Tickets.com and its broad range of clients.”
Tickets.com is at the vanguard of mobile technologies and website mobilization in the ticketing and admissions service industry. Its proprietary ProVenueMobile™ product is the first mobile ticketing technology allowing fans to browse listings and make real-time purchases from their mobile phones without the need to “click to call” to finalize the transaction. Its Tickets@Phone® technology is another pioneering product, offering consumers the option to digitally receive unique barcoded tickets directly and securely to their mobile phones for a 100% mobile—and green—ticket-buying experience.
By harnessing the power of mobile marketing from Txtstation, Tickets.com makes it possible for clients to dynamically interact with fans at games, concerts, events, and broadcasts in real-time. In addition to heightening the overall experience for consumers with interactive promotions and marketing, Txtstation capabilities will help Tickets.com clients strategically build brand identity with target markets with an engaged and captive audience in place. Custom programs and graphics will differentiate campaigns for each individual brand and client’s needs.
Additionally, real-time one-to-one dialogue with event attendees will allow Tickets.com clients to identify and capture data on potentially all audience members—not just ticket buyers—that can be used for opt-in, ongoing mobile marketing, cross promotions, and other revenue-building initiatives. Mobile marketing solutions from Txtstation also deliver incremental revenues from premium text messages (SMS), multi-media messages (MMS), and content downloads.
“Our alliance with Txtstation is in alignment with our strategy to partner with industry-leading companies who can provide exceptional technologies at competitive pricing,” said Sheri Fink, eCommerce and Strategic Alliances, Tickets.com. “We look forward to offering our clients real-time mobile interactivity with their fans.”
Txtstation Global Mobile Marketing (www.txtstation.com) has been providing mobile interactivity products and services to events, sports teams, music/entertainment properties, broadcasters, brands, and agencies since 2004. “We are excited about collaborating with Tickets.com to boost mobile interactivity for their clients,” said Michael Falato, Vice President of Sales & Business Development, Txtstation. “I think our companies are well matched in terms of commitment to technological innovation and customer service, and I see many opportunities for synergy in supporting Tickets.com and its broad range of clients.”
Tickets.com is at the vanguard of mobile technologies and website mobilization in the ticketing and admissions service industry. Its proprietary ProVenueMobile™ product is the first mobile ticketing technology allowing fans to browse listings and make real-time purchases from their mobile phones without the need to “click to call” to finalize the transaction. Its Tickets@Phone® technology is another pioneering product, offering consumers the option to digitally receive unique barcoded tickets directly and securely to their mobile phones for a 100% mobile—and green—ticket-buying experience.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
More than 1 in 10 mobile subscribers to use mobile ticketing in 2014 globally, says new Juniper report
Travellers, cinema goers and sport fans to embrace the convenience of tickets on their mobiles according to new Juniper report
A new study by Juniper Research has forecast that more than 1 in 10 mobile subscribers will either have a ticket delivered to their mobile phone or buy a ticket with their phone by 2014. This represents a five-fold growth over the next five years.
The Mobile Ticketing report found that services are developing fastest in the transport sector, with SMS, bar code and, increasingly, app driven services being offered by rail & metro companies and airlines.
The potential for rail, metro & bus mobile ticketing is shown by early adopter market hotspots such as Japan, Scandinavia and Austria. Global impetus is being added by the rapidly growing number of airlines offering not only mobile boarding passes but ticket booking and payment as well. Beyond transport, mobile ticketing is already seeing traction across a wide range of sporting and entertainment venues including baseball, concerts and movies.
Report author Howard Wilcox stated: “Our research established that ticketing providers are exploiting apps to deliver innovative offerings - not just on smart phones either. One of the keys to widespread acceptance is going to be the ease for users of “silent” equipping via pre-installation. Telecom Italia’s new SIM cards for 2010 are a good example.”
Juniper Research gained unique market insight on top trends, issues and likely future developments directly from the heart of the market through its primary research interviews with leading mobile ticketing operators, application developers, consultants and vendors. The report includes a detailed five market forecasting suite covering key market parameters.
Further key findings from the report include:
Read more >
A new study by Juniper Research has forecast that more than 1 in 10 mobile subscribers will either have a ticket delivered to their mobile phone or buy a ticket with their phone by 2014. This represents a five-fold growth over the next five years.
The Mobile Ticketing report found that services are developing fastest in the transport sector, with SMS, bar code and, increasingly, app driven services being offered by rail & metro companies and airlines.
The potential for rail, metro & bus mobile ticketing is shown by early adopter market hotspots such as Japan, Scandinavia and Austria. Global impetus is being added by the rapidly growing number of airlines offering not only mobile boarding passes but ticket booking and payment as well. Beyond transport, mobile ticketing is already seeing traction across a wide range of sporting and entertainment venues including baseball, concerts and movies.
Report author Howard Wilcox stated: “Our research established that ticketing providers are exploiting apps to deliver innovative offerings - not just on smart phones either. One of the keys to widespread acceptance is going to be the ease for users of “silent” equipping via pre-installation. Telecom Italia’s new SIM cards for 2010 are a good example.”
Juniper Research gained unique market insight on top trends, issues and likely future developments directly from the heart of the market through its primary research interviews with leading mobile ticketing operators, application developers, consultants and vendors. The report includes a detailed five market forecasting suite covering key market parameters.
Further key findings from the report include:
- Europe, Far East & China & North America regions are all forecast to see double digit penetration by 2014
- Growth constraints include multiple ticket scheme environments such as certain transport markets, with their potential resulting user issues such as support and help
Read more >
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Tickets.com in the News: Digital tickets for Oakland A's fans
San Jose Web 2.0 Examiner
Bonnie Boglioli-Randall
The Oakland Athletics sealed a deal with Costa Mesa-based Tickets.com to offer its fans complete mobile ticketing from start to finish. The A's are the first Major League Baseball club to implement start-to-finish mobile ticketing with the ProVenue mobile platform technology. With no applications necessary or calls to make, the purchase is short and sweet. Even better is the digitally delivered bar-code that eliminates the once necessary 3 P's of m-commerce: print, post or pick-up.
The A's Executive Director of Ticket Sales, Steve Fanelli, cited the importance of getting a piece of the mobile pie. "Staying ahead of advances in the mobile web market is critical in pleasing our fans and growing our organization," Fanelli said in a press release.
To see just how easy this process is, visit the mobile friendly A's website from your smart phone. Click on the prominent schedule link, choose your intended game, pay for it from your cell phone and wait briefly for your 2-D digital ticket. A slew of phones are compatible with the new ticketing feature including the iPhone (and iPod Touch), several Blackberry's and a few LG's. The Athletic's note that more devices are expected to be enabled shortly.
Response to the ProVenue platform has been positive thus far, with clients such as the Daytona International Speedway already on board. Tickets.com is currently the only ticket provider in the U.S. to offer complete ticketing via mobile. With m-commerce (mobile) usage on the rise since the advent of smart phones, it is expected that more such options will be made available within the next year for other sporting clubs.
Bonnie Boglioli-Randall
The Oakland Athletics sealed a deal with Costa Mesa-based Tickets.com to offer its fans complete mobile ticketing from start to finish. The A's are the first Major League Baseball club to implement start-to-finish mobile ticketing with the ProVenue mobile platform technology. With no applications necessary or calls to make, the purchase is short and sweet. Even better is the digitally delivered bar-code that eliminates the once necessary 3 P's of m-commerce: print, post or pick-up.
The A's Executive Director of Ticket Sales, Steve Fanelli, cited the importance of getting a piece of the mobile pie. "Staying ahead of advances in the mobile web market is critical in pleasing our fans and growing our organization," Fanelli said in a press release.
To see just how easy this process is, visit the mobile friendly A's website from your smart phone. Click on the prominent schedule link, choose your intended game, pay for it from your cell phone and wait briefly for your 2-D digital ticket. A slew of phones are compatible with the new ticketing feature including the iPhone (and iPod Touch), several Blackberry's and a few LG's. The Athletic's note that more devices are expected to be enabled shortly.
Response to the ProVenue platform has been positive thus far, with clients such as the Daytona International Speedway already on board. Tickets.com is currently the only ticket provider in the U.S. to offer complete ticketing via mobile. With m-commerce (mobile) usage on the rise since the advent of smart phones, it is expected that more such options will be made available within the next year for other sporting clubs.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Tickets.com Launches ProVenueMobile Mobile Ticketing for Oakland Athletics Tickets
Oakland Athletics Become First Major League Baseball Club to Fully Leverage the Potential of ProVenueMobile™ from Tickets.com
Tickets.com, a leading global provider of integrated ticketing solutions, announced that the Oakland A’s recently became the first Major League Baseball Club to implement the full functionality of ProVenueMobile™. Tickets.com is the only ticketing provider in North America to offer client-branded web site mobilization. Using this technology, Athletics fans can complete full-circle, real-time ticket transactions from select Internet-enabled mobile devices without downloading an application. Search, selection, payment and ticket delivery (using Tickets@Phone®) can be done directly through the Athletics mobile web site at wap.oaklandathletics.com without the need to “click to call” or access a computer.
“We are excited to be making this unrivaled mobile technology available to our fans,” said Steve Fanelli, Executive Director of Tickets Sales and Operations, Oakland Athletics. “Staying ahead of advances in the mobile web market is critical in pleasing our fans and growing our organization. With Tickets.com leading the way, we are confident we have the industry’s best technologies and customer service in our toolkit.”
“ProVenueMobile provides a complete end-to-end ticket buying experience by allowing fans to purchase tickets from their mobile devices and have them electronically delivered via a 2D bar-coded ticket to that device,” said Steve DeMots, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Tickets.com.
The Athletics’ adoption of ProVenueMobile continues their tradition of innovation in serving their fans; the Athletics were also the first Tickets.com client to offer Tickets@Phone when this convenient and groundbreaking delivery channel was originally introduced in 2007. (Today, Tickets.com remains the only ticket provider in the United States to enable ticket delivery to a mobile device.)
Tickets.com expects it will launch the ProVenueMobile service for other MLB clubs on its client roster before the start of the 2010 baseball season.
Tickets.com, a leading global provider of integrated ticketing solutions, announced that the Oakland A’s recently became the first Major League Baseball Club to implement the full functionality of ProVenueMobile™. Tickets.com is the only ticketing provider in North America to offer client-branded web site mobilization. Using this technology, Athletics fans can complete full-circle, real-time ticket transactions from select Internet-enabled mobile devices without downloading an application. Search, selection, payment and ticket delivery (using Tickets@Phone®) can be done directly through the Athletics mobile web site at wap.oaklandathletics.com without the need to “click to call” or access a computer.
“We are excited to be making this unrivaled mobile technology available to our fans,” said Steve Fanelli, Executive Director of Tickets Sales and Operations, Oakland Athletics. “Staying ahead of advances in the mobile web market is critical in pleasing our fans and growing our organization. With Tickets.com leading the way, we are confident we have the industry’s best technologies and customer service in our toolkit.”
“ProVenueMobile provides a complete end-to-end ticket buying experience by allowing fans to purchase tickets from their mobile devices and have them electronically delivered via a 2D bar-coded ticket to that device,” said Steve DeMots, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Tickets.com.
The Athletics’ adoption of ProVenueMobile continues their tradition of innovation in serving their fans; the Athletics were also the first Tickets.com client to offer Tickets@Phone when this convenient and groundbreaking delivery channel was originally introduced in 2007. (Today, Tickets.com remains the only ticket provider in the United States to enable ticket delivery to a mobile device.)
Tickets.com expects it will launch the ProVenueMobile service for other MLB clubs on its client roster before the start of the 2010 baseball season.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Growth of Mobile Web Usage
As mobile web adoption continues to surge, companies worldwide are realizing the importance of providing customers a successful experience when going to their sites from mobile phones – even if the mobile experience is limited or done in phases. The mobile site is now analogous to the website as the hub of your interaction with customers’ mobile phones.
Tickets.com offers end-to-end mobile ticket purchase and mobile ticket delivery solutions:
ProVenueMobile™
Expand your reach by making tickets available for purchase through mobile devices. Now you can offer customers the ability to complete a ticket transaction from a mobile phone. Customers are no longer limited by time or place. Mobilizing your website – including event listings, venue information, and purchase process – offers your customers the ultimate convenience: the ability to buy your tickets anytime, anywhere!
Learn more about ProVenueMobile ticketing >
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tickets@Phone®
Send paperless, barcoded tickets directly to your customers’ mobile phones. Tickets@Phone tickets are redeemed at your venue directly from their mobile phone display through the use of a barcode scanner. Tickets@Phone is an innovative ticket delivery method that expands your options of how your customers receive their tickets. With Tickets@Phone, your customers’ tickets are delivered to their mobile phones.
Learn more about Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery >
Tickets.com offers end-to-end mobile ticket purchase and mobile ticket delivery solutions:
ProVenueMobile™
Expand your reach by making tickets available for purchase through mobile devices. Now you can offer customers the ability to complete a ticket transaction from a mobile phone. Customers are no longer limited by time or place. Mobilizing your website – including event listings, venue information, and purchase process – offers your customers the ultimate convenience: the ability to buy your tickets anytime, anywhere!
Learn more about ProVenueMobile ticketing >
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Tickets@Phone®
Send paperless, barcoded tickets directly to your customers’ mobile phones. Tickets@Phone tickets are redeemed at your venue directly from their mobile phone display through the use of a barcode scanner. Tickets@Phone is an innovative ticket delivery method that expands your options of how your customers receive their tickets. With Tickets@Phone, your customers’ tickets are delivered to their mobile phones.
Learn more about Tickets@Phone mobile ticket delivery >
Friday, December 4, 2009
Tulsa Performing Arts Center Goes Live With ProVenueMobile™ from Tickets.com
ProVenueMobile Now Available for December 7 On-Sale Date for January 2010 Run of Legally Blonde–The Musical.
Tickets.com—a leading global provider of integrated, high-performance ticketing solutions—has added its proprietary mobile platform ProVenueMobile™ to the Tulsa Performing Arts Center (TPAC). TPAC’s decision to offer ProVenueMobile differentiates them by allowing patrons to complete a ticket transaction on any Internet enabled mobile phone with the option of Tickets@Phone® delivery. TPAC patrons can utilize ProVenueMobile to purchase tickets for Legally Blonde—The Musical; on-sale December 7, 2009.
ProVenueMobile™ allows full-circle ticket purchases to be made 24/7 from any Internet-enabled mobile phone, directly through a client’s branded, mobilized website. The mobile platform set a new standard in the ticketing industry in early 2009 by being the first technology to allow real-time ticket transactions from a mobile phone that also offers Tickets@Phone; the delivery of a digital, bar-coded ticket via MMS or picture message.
“Mobile ticketing has arrived and we are delighted to be one of the first organizations to offer the user-friendly ProVenueMobile to our customers,” said John Scott, director, TPAC.
TPAC presents outstanding cultural events and performances spotlighting artists—ranging from international stars to local favorites—touring shows, arts organizations, and community-based programming. In addition to Legally Blonde, other shows on sale include The Nutcracker, performed by the Tulsa Ballet, David Sedaris’ The Santaland Diaries and Tony Award winner August: Osage County.
“We’re thrilled that TPAC has embraced ProVenueMobile,” said Larry Witherspoon, chief executive officer, Tickets.com. “It’s so gratifying to work with clients that integrate new technologies into their ticketing services portfolio.”
Tickets can also be purchased through the venue’s website (http://www.tulsapac.com) or box office.
The national U.S. touring company of Legally Blonde runs January 5 – 10, 2010 at TPAC’s Chapman Music Hall, the largest of the Tulsa, OK-based Center’s four theaters.
Tickets.com—a leading global provider of integrated, high-performance ticketing solutions—has added its proprietary mobile platform ProVenueMobile™ to the Tulsa Performing Arts Center (TPAC). TPAC’s decision to offer ProVenueMobile differentiates them by allowing patrons to complete a ticket transaction on any Internet enabled mobile phone with the option of Tickets@Phone® delivery. TPAC patrons can utilize ProVenueMobile to purchase tickets for Legally Blonde—The Musical; on-sale December 7, 2009.
ProVenueMobile™ allows full-circle ticket purchases to be made 24/7 from any Internet-enabled mobile phone, directly through a client’s branded, mobilized website. The mobile platform set a new standard in the ticketing industry in early 2009 by being the first technology to allow real-time ticket transactions from a mobile phone that also offers Tickets@Phone; the delivery of a digital, bar-coded ticket via MMS or picture message.
“Mobile ticketing has arrived and we are delighted to be one of the first organizations to offer the user-friendly ProVenueMobile to our customers,” said John Scott, director, TPAC.
TPAC presents outstanding cultural events and performances spotlighting artists—ranging from international stars to local favorites—touring shows, arts organizations, and community-based programming. In addition to Legally Blonde, other shows on sale include The Nutcracker, performed by the Tulsa Ballet, David Sedaris’ The Santaland Diaries and Tony Award winner August: Osage County.
“We’re thrilled that TPAC has embraced ProVenueMobile,” said Larry Witherspoon, chief executive officer, Tickets.com. “It’s so gratifying to work with clients that integrate new technologies into their ticketing services portfolio.”
Tickets can also be purchased through the venue’s website (http://www.tulsapac.com) or box office.
The national U.S. touring company of Legally Blonde runs January 5 – 10, 2010 at TPAC’s Chapman Music Hall, the largest of the Tulsa, OK-based Center’s four theaters.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Facebook, Mobile Phones and the Future of Shopping
Forget the mall. Retailers are tapping Facebook and mobile phones to get closer to customers wherever they are.
CIO Magazine
At least 22 retailers have been driven into bankruptcy protection during this recession, including RedEnvelope and Eddie Bauer, or gone out of business altogether, like Circuit City. Blockbuster, Virgin Megastores and many more have closed stores. Survivors, suffering deflated profits and slow sales, warn of bleak holidays: The National Retail Federation predicts a 1 percent sales decline for the season compared to last year. Even Wal-Mart feels the slump, with same-store sales down 1 percent in its second quarter—its first such drop in years.
Baby, it's cold outside.
But smart retailers are going where it's warm: the hot little hands of cellphone—and laptop—toting consumers who want to shop right now, wherever they happen to be sipping their lattes or watching their kids' soccer games. Technology-backed projects to increase revenue include mobile e-commerce, coupons by text message, even storefronts on social networks. As enablers of these projects, CIOs are moving ever closer to the customer.
Social Shopping
E-mail marketing is in full swing now; the number of messages expected to be sent this holiday shopping season will far surpass last year's four billion, according to Experian Marketing Services, a consultancy. Of course, just a fraction of these will be opened. Even fewer messages will coax recipients to visit a website and buy something.
"Websites and e-mail—that's just too many steps now," says Brett Michalak, CIO with Tickets.com, which sells tickets to games, concerts and other events as well as its own ticketing technology.
______________________________________________________________________
Royal Oak Music Theatre, a Michigan music and comedy venue where acts such as Train and Bob Saget have played, started mobile ticketing three years ago and has adjusted its marketing to cover for finicky technology.
Anyone who's done self-check out at the supermarket knows that scanning takes a special, knowing touch. Still, scanning barcodes on the screens of mobile devices often requires extra wiggling of the phone and slanting it at different angles. It's slower than scanning paper tickets. To avoid ticking off patrons lined up to run in and grab general-admission floor spots, Royal Oak created a separate VIP entrance for the mobile customers. There, staff use the newer model scanners required for reading mobile barcodes, and it's not so apparent that the scanning takes longer, says Diana Williams, box office manager.
Mobile customers are also allowed to get into the theater a few minutes before traditional customers, which encourages more people to buy their tickets by cell phone, she says. That's cheaper for the theater than handling paper tickets—saving money and hassle time is Williams' goal. But it also positions the theater well for collecting future revenue.
Mobile ticketing skews young, Williams observes. The theater does shows for all ages, and for a typical adult event, 16 percent of tickets sold are through the mobile channel. But for a recent show by the boy-band Hansen, popular with tween girls, mobile accounted for nearly 40 percent of tickets.
"There's an age—around 22 or younger—where it would never occur to patrons that you couldn't buy a ticket from your phone," Williams says.
Impulse Buys
Mobile and social commerce projects will change the business of any company that invests in it, says Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants.
For example, instead of being a long-planned activity, a Major League Baseball game can become an impulse buy, Stanley says, bringing in more sales for the organization.
Every game day, the Giants have 40,000 seats to sell. If they've sold only 30,000, 10,000 spoil every bit as badly as old pears. Last year, the team changed prices daily on about 2,000 seats. Stanley imagines the day when he'll have a database of fans who, say, live within a mile of the ballpark to whom he can text last-minute offers. "Hey, the Giants have $5 tickets left for tonight. For $5, I'll walk down there," he says. "As they're walking up to the entrance, they're buying on the mobile."
The Giants started to offer mobile tickets midway through the 2008 season, when they sold about 100 tickets that way per game. In 2009, it was about 200 and Stanley expects to do about 400 per game in the coming year. "Fans who use it love it. It's getting the people to use it," he says.
Like hot dogs and cold beer, holding a ticket is part of the rite of baseball, he says. Plus, there's the souvenir value. When pitcher Jonathan Sanchez threw a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres in July, about 50 mobile fans, as well as people who had bought tickets online and printed them on plain paper at home, later requested the team print "real" tickets for them to commemorate the event. "We did that for them. It's good relations," says Stanley. And, he adds, it could turn into a money-making service in the future.
Start small and expand gradually, Stanley advises. He could outfit all 42 entryways at AT&T Park with scanners to read mobile tickets, but the Giants just don't sell enough of them yet to make that cost worthwhile. Not until about 1,000 mobile tickets are sold per game—81,000 in a season—does he expect to see real labor savings compared to handling paper tickets. Ramp-up may be slow, but commerce in these new outlets is a commitment these early adopters say they will keep.
"Eventually there will be far more things that are accessible via your phone," Williams says. "I would rather have our box office be on the forefront of that than scrambling to catch up years down the line."
Today the payoff comes in other ways, she says. The novel technology makes retailers who use it more memorable among consumers and no paper—or less, anyway—makes it a greener way to do business.
Read more >
CIO Magazine
At least 22 retailers have been driven into bankruptcy protection during this recession, including RedEnvelope and Eddie Bauer, or gone out of business altogether, like Circuit City. Blockbuster, Virgin Megastores and many more have closed stores. Survivors, suffering deflated profits and slow sales, warn of bleak holidays: The National Retail Federation predicts a 1 percent sales decline for the season compared to last year. Even Wal-Mart feels the slump, with same-store sales down 1 percent in its second quarter—its first such drop in years.
Baby, it's cold outside.
But smart retailers are going where it's warm: the hot little hands of cellphone—and laptop—toting consumers who want to shop right now, wherever they happen to be sipping their lattes or watching their kids' soccer games. Technology-backed projects to increase revenue include mobile e-commerce, coupons by text message, even storefronts on social networks. As enablers of these projects, CIOs are moving ever closer to the customer.
Social Shopping
E-mail marketing is in full swing now; the number of messages expected to be sent this holiday shopping season will far surpass last year's four billion, according to Experian Marketing Services, a consultancy. Of course, just a fraction of these will be opened. Even fewer messages will coax recipients to visit a website and buy something.
"Websites and e-mail—that's just too many steps now," says Brett Michalak, CIO with Tickets.com, which sells tickets to games, concerts and other events as well as its own ticketing technology.
______________________________________________________________________
Royal Oak Music Theatre, a Michigan music and comedy venue where acts such as Train and Bob Saget have played, started mobile ticketing three years ago and has adjusted its marketing to cover for finicky technology.
Anyone who's done self-check out at the supermarket knows that scanning takes a special, knowing touch. Still, scanning barcodes on the screens of mobile devices often requires extra wiggling of the phone and slanting it at different angles. It's slower than scanning paper tickets. To avoid ticking off patrons lined up to run in and grab general-admission floor spots, Royal Oak created a separate VIP entrance for the mobile customers. There, staff use the newer model scanners required for reading mobile barcodes, and it's not so apparent that the scanning takes longer, says Diana Williams, box office manager.
Mobile customers are also allowed to get into the theater a few minutes before traditional customers, which encourages more people to buy their tickets by cell phone, she says. That's cheaper for the theater than handling paper tickets—saving money and hassle time is Williams' goal. But it also positions the theater well for collecting future revenue.
Mobile ticketing skews young, Williams observes. The theater does shows for all ages, and for a typical adult event, 16 percent of tickets sold are through the mobile channel. But for a recent show by the boy-band Hansen, popular with tween girls, mobile accounted for nearly 40 percent of tickets.
"There's an age—around 22 or younger—where it would never occur to patrons that you couldn't buy a ticket from your phone," Williams says.
Impulse Buys
Mobile and social commerce projects will change the business of any company that invests in it, says Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants.
For example, instead of being a long-planned activity, a Major League Baseball game can become an impulse buy, Stanley says, bringing in more sales for the organization.
Every game day, the Giants have 40,000 seats to sell. If they've sold only 30,000, 10,000 spoil every bit as badly as old pears. Last year, the team changed prices daily on about 2,000 seats. Stanley imagines the day when he'll have a database of fans who, say, live within a mile of the ballpark to whom he can text last-minute offers. "Hey, the Giants have $5 tickets left for tonight. For $5, I'll walk down there," he says. "As they're walking up to the entrance, they're buying on the mobile."
The Giants started to offer mobile tickets midway through the 2008 season, when they sold about 100 tickets that way per game. In 2009, it was about 200 and Stanley expects to do about 400 per game in the coming year. "Fans who use it love it. It's getting the people to use it," he says.
Like hot dogs and cold beer, holding a ticket is part of the rite of baseball, he says. Plus, there's the souvenir value. When pitcher Jonathan Sanchez threw a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres in July, about 50 mobile fans, as well as people who had bought tickets online and printed them on plain paper at home, later requested the team print "real" tickets for them to commemorate the event. "We did that for them. It's good relations," says Stanley. And, he adds, it could turn into a money-making service in the future.
Start small and expand gradually, Stanley advises. He could outfit all 42 entryways at AT&T Park with scanners to read mobile tickets, but the Giants just don't sell enough of them yet to make that cost worthwhile. Not until about 1,000 mobile tickets are sold per game—81,000 in a season—does he expect to see real labor savings compared to handling paper tickets. Ramp-up may be slow, but commerce in these new outlets is a commitment these early adopters say they will keep.
"Eventually there will be far more things that are accessible via your phone," Williams says. "I would rather have our box office be on the forefront of that than scrambling to catch up years down the line."
Today the payoff comes in other ways, she says. The novel technology makes retailers who use it more memorable among consumers and no paper—or less, anyway—makes it a greener way to do business.
Read more >
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Tickets@Phone® Mobile Ticketing Technology
Send paperless, barcoded tickets directly to your customers’ mobile phones. Tickets@Phone tickets are redeemed at your venue directly from their mobile phone display through the use of a barcode scanner.
Tickets@Phone is an innovative ticket delivery method that expands your options of how your customers receive their tickets. With Tickets@Phone, your customers’ tickets are delivered to their mobile phones.
If you would like to learn more about mobile ticketing technologies, please contact Tickets.com at sales@Tickets.com or 888-397-3400.
Tickets@Phone is an innovative ticket delivery method that expands your options of how your customers receive their tickets. With Tickets@Phone, your customers’ tickets are delivered to their mobile phones.
If you would like to learn more about mobile ticketing technologies, please contact Tickets.com at sales@Tickets.com or 888-397-3400.
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