The Agreement Includes the Advanced ProVenue® Platform, ProVenueMobile, Tickets@Phone and Uptix Stored Value Technologies.
Tickets.com adds National League Major League Baseball team the Florida Marlins® to its client line-up with a long-term ticketing agreement anchored on ProVenue®, the industry’s most advanced ticketing platform. Among other technologies, the portfolio of features and services to be delivered to the Marlins includes ProVenueMobile, Tickets@Phone and Uptix stored value ticketing.
“When reviewing our options in choosing a ticketing partner, we saw that Tickets.com was by far the best technological fit,” says David Samson, Florida Marlins team president. “I know that our fans, as well as our organization, will benefit from the breakthrough technologies that Tickets.com is offering—and continuing to develop.”
The Florida Marlins’ adoption of the web-based ProVenue platform coincides with the kick-off of the team’s 2012 season in their new stadium. The 2012 season ticket-holder deposits are already being processed through the ProVenue system. The platform’s flexible open architecture allows for additional features, applications, and data management programs offered by Tickets.com or other third parties to be seamlessly integrated at any time.
“We’re confident that the ProVenue ticketing platform will meet all the consumer-facing and internal needs of the Florida Marlins organization,” says John Walker, president and CEO, Tickets.com. “The club shares our enthusiasm for technological innovation, so it is exciting to be their technology partner as they take up residence at the Marlins Ballpark.”
The Marlins will be extending their reach of ProVenue with the simultaneous deployment of ProVenueMobile, giving fans the capability to purchase their tickets with their mobile device. To give fans a 360 degree mobile – and green – ticket-buying experience, the Marlins are also incorporating Tickets.com’s Tickets@Phone feature, which allows purchasers to digitally receive their tickets, through the use of unique bar codes, directly on their mobile device.
The Marlins are also implementing a stored-value ticketing program using the versatile Uptix technology developed by Givex USA Corporation and offered through Tickets.com. The Uptix service—which can be customized and individually branded for each client—allows concessions and merchandise credits to be pre-loaded onto a ticket through the barcode. The value of credits is included into the ticket purchase price. The added value is scannable by vendors throughout the ballpark for the duration of the game.
The Uptix service can also be programmed to electronically award bonus dollars to ticket-holders at interactive, in-game promotions, enhancing the overall fan experience—another example of the industry-leading technology from Tickets.com that reeled in the Marlins.
Showing posts with label uptix. Show all posts
Showing posts with label uptix. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
Tickets.com Product Spotlight: Uptix Stored Value
Uptix broadens the traditional ticket function of event access by securely enabling individual tickets to store other kinds of data, such as cash value. These “loaded” tickets can then be used for redemption at various points of sale in your venue (e.g., concessions, retail stands). You can now offer a complete entertainment experience with a single event ticket!
Uptix™ is jointly developed and provided in partnership with Givex®. Load, scan, get, go!
Uptix™ is jointly developed and provided in partnership with Givex®. Load, scan, get, go!
Friday, September 18, 2009
San Francisco Giants Pioneer In-Game Promotion Using Splash Tix
The San Francisco Giants launched an in-game promotion this week using Splash Tix, their stored value ticket program. Splash Tix enables cash value, select merchandise, and other data to be stored on individual tickets, which fans can then redeem at any point of purchase location. The "Ka$h for K's" promo got the crowd in a special section of the ballpark excited when they learned their tickets had been loaded with $5 credit for food and merchandise at the AT&T Park concession stands. For every strikeout the Giants pitchers recorded during the half inning, an extra $5 was added to their tickets. The money was redeemable at all AT&T Park concession stands and Dugout Store.
The Giants are also using the stored value program to help retain season ticket holders in their View Level Reserved section by adding $5 of cash value to each game.
Stored value tickets are the ultimate convenience for fans. No cash or credit card required in order to make purchases within the ballpark. The ticketing technology enables teams to run in-game promotions, offer additional value for group sales tickets, and much more.
Splash Tix utilizes Uptix, an industry leading stored value product offered by Tickets.com in partnership with Givex.
Learn more about stored value tickets at Tickets.com >
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Radiant Systems Expands Relationship with San Francisco Giants
New loaded-ticket program capitalizes on technology to give fans more value for game ticket price
Reuters
Radiant Systems, Inc. announced a new agreement with the San Francisco Giants to be a key provider of the new loaded-ticket system, a season-ticket-holder incentive deemed so successful by team officials that they have taken steps to open the program to all fans at AT&T Park.
"We looked at a number of ticket-technology systems, but the Quest solution really stood out based on what we are trying to achieve in the future," said Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants. "We originally tested the concept in a limited area with our season-ticket holders during the renewal process and had great success. I am so pleased with where we are now, that we have gone ahead and moved on to offering loaded tickets to individuals with single-game tickets. The only limiting factor to this program is our imagination."
Combining Uptix, (a joint venture between Givex and Tickets.com) and the Quest solution, loaded tickets allow extra monetary value to be added to a game-day ticket for use at concession stands as well as in premium food and beverage areas. Teams can use loaded tickets to offer incentives to fans in certain sections or attract season ticket holders by storing data on each ticket, including cash value or vouchers for specific uses. Ticket purchasers can also use the loaded-ticket option to store cash value on their own tickets or on tickets being given as gifts.
The Quest VersaTerm and V-Touch hardware, along with more than 300 Symbol LS2208 barcode scanners by Motorola give the San Francisco Giants fans the ability to easily redeem loaded tickets at concession areas and from premium seats at AT&T Park.
Deciding to test the technology on a small, specific audience, the Giants unveiled the loaded-ticket program to season-ticket holders in the view-reserved infield seats at AT&T Park. By offering a $5 credit on each ticket, the team realized a 10 percent increase in renewals within the targeted section. The Giants knew this technology could keep them ahead of industry downturns, as baseball clubs around the country report drops in ticket sales.
When paired with the Quest solution, loaded tickets offer venues the opportunity to tailor special incentives to fans and increase sales. One great benefit of the Quest solution is its ability to seamlessly integrate with other programs creating a system that gives sports teams the ability to implement exciting and cutting edge offers to fans.
"Fans want something exciting and entertaining when they arrive at the ballpark," said Scott Kingsfield, president of the sports and entertainment division at Radiant Systems. "The Quest solution allows teams to be as creative as possible, without ever needing to change venue technology. We stay right in step with every idea and each new incentive."
About Radiant Systems, Inc.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Radiant Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: RADS) is a global provider of innovative technology to the hospitality and retail industries. For more than two decades, Radiant`s point of sale hardware and software solutions have helped to redefine the consumer experience in more than 100,000 restaurants, retail stores, stadiums, parks, arenas, cinemas, convenience stores, fuel centers and other customer-service venues. Radiant has offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. For more information, visit www.radiantsystems.com
Reuters
Radiant Systems, Inc. announced a new agreement with the San Francisco Giants to be a key provider of the new loaded-ticket system, a season-ticket-holder incentive deemed so successful by team officials that they have taken steps to open the program to all fans at AT&T Park.
"We looked at a number of ticket-technology systems, but the Quest solution really stood out based on what we are trying to achieve in the future," said Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants. "We originally tested the concept in a limited area with our season-ticket holders during the renewal process and had great success. I am so pleased with where we are now, that we have gone ahead and moved on to offering loaded tickets to individuals with single-game tickets. The only limiting factor to this program is our imagination."
Combining Uptix, (a joint venture between Givex and Tickets.com) and the Quest solution, loaded tickets allow extra monetary value to be added to a game-day ticket for use at concession stands as well as in premium food and beverage areas. Teams can use loaded tickets to offer incentives to fans in certain sections or attract season ticket holders by storing data on each ticket, including cash value or vouchers for specific uses. Ticket purchasers can also use the loaded-ticket option to store cash value on their own tickets or on tickets being given as gifts.
The Quest VersaTerm and V-Touch hardware, along with more than 300 Symbol LS2208 barcode scanners by Motorola give the San Francisco Giants fans the ability to easily redeem loaded tickets at concession areas and from premium seats at AT&T Park.
Deciding to test the technology on a small, specific audience, the Giants unveiled the loaded-ticket program to season-ticket holders in the view-reserved infield seats at AT&T Park. By offering a $5 credit on each ticket, the team realized a 10 percent increase in renewals within the targeted section. The Giants knew this technology could keep them ahead of industry downturns, as baseball clubs around the country report drops in ticket sales.
When paired with the Quest solution, loaded tickets offer venues the opportunity to tailor special incentives to fans and increase sales. One great benefit of the Quest solution is its ability to seamlessly integrate with other programs creating a system that gives sports teams the ability to implement exciting and cutting edge offers to fans.
"Fans want something exciting and entertaining when they arrive at the ballpark," said Scott Kingsfield, president of the sports and entertainment division at Radiant Systems. "The Quest solution allows teams to be as creative as possible, without ever needing to change venue technology. We stay right in step with every idea and each new incentive."
About Radiant Systems, Inc.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Radiant Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: RADS) is a global provider of innovative technology to the hospitality and retail industries. For more than two decades, Radiant`s point of sale hardware and software solutions have helped to redefine the consumer experience in more than 100,000 restaurants, retail stores, stadiums, parks, arenas, cinemas, convenience stores, fuel centers and other customer-service venues. Radiant has offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. For more information, visit www.radiantsystems.com
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Tickets.com Product Highlight: Uptix Stored Value
Uptix Stored ValueUptix broadens the traditional ticket function of event access by securely enabling individual tickets to store other kinds of data, such as cash value. These “loaded” tickets can then be used for redemption at various points of sale in your venue (e.g., concessions, retail stands). You can now offer a complete entertainment experience with a single event ticket! Uptix™ is jointly developed and provided in partnership with Givex®.
Learn more about Uptix stored value tickets >
Monday, February 23, 2009
Innovation, with Mustard and Relish
By Jim McCarthy
Live 2.0
Ok, ok, it’s a press release and not a true news story, but read this anyway. Here’s the key tidbit:
“Tickets.com and closed loop card technologies provider Givex conducted a successful pilot of their stored value technology, Uptix(TM), at the Giants 16th Annual FanFest at AT&T Park in San Francisco.”
Translating that out of Press Release-ian, it means that the San Francisco Giants tested a program whereby you can use the ticket you bought to get into an event to then get stuff once you go in.
For example, you might buy a $25 seat and have a hot dog and a beer as “stored value.” The sticker price for all that could be $35, for example, but you pay just $30.
Another example is that you might get your ticket through a certain promotion at the regular face value, but if you take it to the souvenir stand, you get a pennant or a t-shirt. All of that would be encoded on your ticket.
Actually, Russ Stanley of the Giants mentioned this briefly in his article in the Inaugural Edition, but it’s interesting to see this unfolding in real life.
(Do I even have to do the full disclosure thing that we (Goldstar) work with both the Giants and Tickets.com? Ok, we do. Generally assume we work with everyone, and you’ll have to put up with this disclosures less often.)
Again, in Press Release-ian, Tickets.com says this feature “provides myriad promotional and sponsorship opportunities including rewards tied to on-field events.”
Translating that into English, it means you could do a lot of different things with it.
Baseball has been pioneering this area, but it’s not by any means limited. Why couldn’t an opera “store” intermission drinks on the ticket? Or maybe Cirque Du Soleil could “store” a DVD of the performance on the ticket.
These ideas are good and possibly very useful, but mildly boring (plus the Giants beat us to it), and surely, we can do better than that. How about “storing” access to an after-party or an online downloadable?
Here’s a crazy idea: how about “storing” the possibility of being involved in the show? In other words, if your bar code is the one identified as the winner, at some point during the performance, the performers will actually involve you in the show. They’ll just be told in advance where the person will be who is to be included.
Ok, let’s try this. Any other uses for ’stored’ value? I’ll give a couple tickets on Goldstar to the one I like best. (Goldstar employees, you can give ideas too, but you can’t win the tickets. Sorry about that.) If I don’t get any suggestions, I will award the tickets to myself, which would be sad.
Submit Ideas >
Live 2.0
Ok, ok, it’s a press release and not a true news story, but read this anyway. Here’s the key tidbit:
“Tickets.com and closed loop card technologies provider Givex conducted a successful pilot of their stored value technology, Uptix(TM), at the Giants 16th Annual FanFest at AT&T Park in San Francisco.”
Translating that out of Press Release-ian, it means that the San Francisco Giants tested a program whereby you can use the ticket you bought to get into an event to then get stuff once you go in.
For example, you might buy a $25 seat and have a hot dog and a beer as “stored value.” The sticker price for all that could be $35, for example, but you pay just $30.
Another example is that you might get your ticket through a certain promotion at the regular face value, but if you take it to the souvenir stand, you get a pennant or a t-shirt. All of that would be encoded on your ticket.
Actually, Russ Stanley of the Giants mentioned this briefly in his article in the Inaugural Edition, but it’s interesting to see this unfolding in real life.
(Do I even have to do the full disclosure thing that we (Goldstar) work with both the Giants and Tickets.com? Ok, we do. Generally assume we work with everyone, and you’ll have to put up with this disclosures less often.)
Again, in Press Release-ian, Tickets.com says this feature “provides myriad promotional and sponsorship opportunities including rewards tied to on-field events.”
Translating that into English, it means you could do a lot of different things with it.
Baseball has been pioneering this area, but it’s not by any means limited. Why couldn’t an opera “store” intermission drinks on the ticket? Or maybe Cirque Du Soleil could “store” a DVD of the performance on the ticket.
These ideas are good and possibly very useful, but mildly boring (plus the Giants beat us to it), and surely, we can do better than that. How about “storing” access to an after-party or an online downloadable?
Here’s a crazy idea: how about “storing” the possibility of being involved in the show? In other words, if your bar code is the one identified as the winner, at some point during the performance, the performers will actually involve you in the show. They’ll just be told in advance where the person will be who is to be included.
Ok, let’s try this. Any other uses for ’stored’ value? I’ll give a couple tickets on Goldstar to the one I like best. (Goldstar employees, you can give ideas too, but you can’t win the tickets. Sorry about that.) If I don’t get any suggestions, I will award the tickets to myself, which would be sad.
Submit Ideas >
Monday, February 16, 2009
Tickets.com’s Stored Value Ticket Program Makes a Big Splash at San Francisco Giants FanFest
COSTA MESA, CA – February 12, 2009 – Tickets.com and closed loop card technologies provider Givex conducted a successful pilot of their stored value technology, Uptix™, at the Giants 16th Annual FanFest at AT&T Park in San Francisco. Uptix enables cash value, select merchandise and other data to be stored on individual tickets, which event-goers can then redeem at any point of purchase location. The Giants are calling the program Splash Tix and will roll out the first phase of the implementation to select season ticket holders and groups.
John Rizzi, director of product strategy and marketing, Tickets.com, attended FanFest and was impressed by the positive response to the Splash Tix program. “From day one, the Giants will have the highest volume and most ambitious stored value program in baseball. Tickets.com is proud to partner with the Giants and Givex to make it happen.”
The successful test proved to the Giants that their Splash Tix program is ready for the first phase of the implementation. “We are very happy with the results from Fanfest; this is a great way for groups to add concessions and improve their game-day experience”, said Devin Lutes director of ticket services for the San Francisco Giants. The Giants are also using the program to help retain season ticket holders in their View Level Reserved section by adding $5 of cash value to each game. “We think Splash Tix is a great way to give our season ticket holders additional value for their continued loyalty”, concluded Lutes.
“I’m very pleased! This test confirmed our confidence in this innovative program, and now we’re ready for Opening Day”, said Dan DeMato, president of FutureTix, who also attended FanFest and is consulting on the Uptix product.
Other MLB teams are in discussions with Tickets.com to implement Uptix for the upcoming season. Those teams can take advantage of other Uptix functionality such as adding value to any ticket in the ball park during the game. This feature provides myriad promotional and sponsorship opportunities including rewards tied to on-field events. Uptix can also be configured to allow single-game ticket buyers to add value to their tickets during the purchase process.
Learn more >
John Rizzi, director of product strategy and marketing, Tickets.com, attended FanFest and was impressed by the positive response to the Splash Tix program. “From day one, the Giants will have the highest volume and most ambitious stored value program in baseball. Tickets.com is proud to partner with the Giants and Givex to make it happen.”
The successful test proved to the Giants that their Splash Tix program is ready for the first phase of the implementation. “We are very happy with the results from Fanfest; this is a great way for groups to add concessions and improve their game-day experience”, said Devin Lutes director of ticket services for the San Francisco Giants. The Giants are also using the program to help retain season ticket holders in their View Level Reserved section by adding $5 of cash value to each game. “We think Splash Tix is a great way to give our season ticket holders additional value for their continued loyalty”, concluded Lutes.
“I’m very pleased! This test confirmed our confidence in this innovative program, and now we’re ready for Opening Day”, said Dan DeMato, president of FutureTix, who also attended FanFest and is consulting on the Uptix product.
Other MLB teams are in discussions with Tickets.com to implement Uptix for the upcoming season. Those teams can take advantage of other Uptix functionality such as adding value to any ticket in the ball park during the game. This feature provides myriad promotional and sponsorship opportunities including rewards tied to on-field events. Uptix can also be configured to allow single-game ticket buyers to add value to their tickets during the purchase process.
Learn more >
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Venues Today Q&A with Steve DeMots
Venues Today Q&A
STEVE DEMOTS, TICKETS.COM
Dave Brooks
Tickets.com is continuing to expand the capabilities of its new ProVenue software suite and has signed a deal with gift card maker Givex to create Uptix, a stored value system for event tickets. The San Francisco Giants will premier the system this season.
Has the dream of combining concessions and tickets into a single purchasing experience finally come to the Big Leagues? Venues Today caught up with Tickets.com’s Sr. V.P. of Business Development Steve DeMots to learn more.
Venues Today: We’ve heard about this concept for a few years now. What is Tickets.com doing with stored value?
Steve DeMots: Our overall strategy right now is to focus on the core ticketing technology. All our additional functionality is being developed through strategic partnerships, so instead of building stored value ourselves, we partnered with one of the largest gift card companies in the world — Givex out of Toronto. We created a product with them called Uptix; our stored value offering.
VT: How does it work?
SD: In a nutshell, it means having a separate database that keeps track of value tied into the barcode on the ticket. What the Phillies have done with their own stored value system is take one of their $60 seats and make it into a $90 seat with $30 worth of stored value. Through the barcode, you can go to any POS station and redeem the remaining value on the ticket. The other way it is used is to add stored value on an existing ticket. A corporate season ticket holder can use the system to load concessions money onto the barcode of the ticket. This allows the corporate ticket holder to give his client four tickets and $40 each (or whatever amount they choose) to spend on concessions.
VT: How does the season ticket-holder manage his stored value account?
SD: The system has a customer portal for online management of stored value accounts. Imagine that a season ticket holder has a $1,000 of stored value that floats over their season package. This system allows them to assign different dollar amounts to different tickets.
VT: What kind of promotional opportunities can the teams build into the stored value system?
SD: Tons. Let’s use a hypothetical example. Imagine you’re an Angels fan and Coke sponsors a promotion that if Vladimir Guerrero hits a homerun in the 7th inning, everyone in section 330 gets $15 worth of Coke products, valid for that day. If he did hit a homerun, you could do a mass upload onto everyone’s ticket in that particular section, and that value could only be used to purchase Coke products. The promotional opportunities are endless.
VT: What happens with any left over money on the ticket?
SD: It can be used anywhere else in the park. It’s almost the same as a gift card, but instead of a magnetic strip you’re using the barcode on the ticket.
VT: Can you get a refund of your remaining balance?
SD: It’s all business rules of the individual client. Some clients have a “use-it-or-lose-it” mentality.
VT: Aren’t there federal laws mandating that vendors can’t take left over gift card balances?
SD: Yes there are. But, many teams are calling stored value a “coupon” because it's no longer a $60 seat with a $30 gift certificate. It’s now a $90 seat with a $30 coupon. If, however, someone buys additional value on their ticket through a customer portal, then the teams are subject to federal gift card laws.
VT: Which teams are implementing stored value?
SD: The Phillies are using Paciolan software and they’ve developed their own system. The Giants will be using Uptix this season with ProVenue. The competitor is a company called STADIS, which has launched stored value with the Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
VT: What is your projected growth for Uptix?
SD: Within the next few years, a majority of the sports and entertainment organizations that have a lot of season tickets will have some type of stored value product. It intrigues everyone. The key is getting your arms around it on a venue-by-venue basis and deciding what you want to accomplish.
Learn more about Tickets.com ticketing technologies >
STEVE DEMOTS, TICKETS.COM
Dave Brooks
Tickets.com is continuing to expand the capabilities of its new ProVenue software suite and has signed a deal with gift card maker Givex to create Uptix, a stored value system for event tickets. The San Francisco Giants will premier the system this season. Has the dream of combining concessions and tickets into a single purchasing experience finally come to the Big Leagues? Venues Today caught up with Tickets.com’s Sr. V.P. of Business Development Steve DeMots to learn more.
Venues Today: We’ve heard about this concept for a few years now. What is Tickets.com doing with stored value?
Steve DeMots: Our overall strategy right now is to focus on the core ticketing technology. All our additional functionality is being developed through strategic partnerships, so instead of building stored value ourselves, we partnered with one of the largest gift card companies in the world — Givex out of Toronto. We created a product with them called Uptix; our stored value offering.
VT: How does it work?
SD: In a nutshell, it means having a separate database that keeps track of value tied into the barcode on the ticket. What the Phillies have done with their own stored value system is take one of their $60 seats and make it into a $90 seat with $30 worth of stored value. Through the barcode, you can go to any POS station and redeem the remaining value on the ticket. The other way it is used is to add stored value on an existing ticket. A corporate season ticket holder can use the system to load concessions money onto the barcode of the ticket. This allows the corporate ticket holder to give his client four tickets and $40 each (or whatever amount they choose) to spend on concessions.
VT: How does the season ticket-holder manage his stored value account?
SD: The system has a customer portal for online management of stored value accounts. Imagine that a season ticket holder has a $1,000 of stored value that floats over their season package. This system allows them to assign different dollar amounts to different tickets.
VT: What kind of promotional opportunities can the teams build into the stored value system?
SD: Tons. Let’s use a hypothetical example. Imagine you’re an Angels fan and Coke sponsors a promotion that if Vladimir Guerrero hits a homerun in the 7th inning, everyone in section 330 gets $15 worth of Coke products, valid for that day. If he did hit a homerun, you could do a mass upload onto everyone’s ticket in that particular section, and that value could only be used to purchase Coke products. The promotional opportunities are endless.
VT: What happens with any left over money on the ticket?
SD: It can be used anywhere else in the park. It’s almost the same as a gift card, but instead of a magnetic strip you’re using the barcode on the ticket.
VT: Can you get a refund of your remaining balance?
SD: It’s all business rules of the individual client. Some clients have a “use-it-or-lose-it” mentality.
VT: Aren’t there federal laws mandating that vendors can’t take left over gift card balances?
SD: Yes there are. But, many teams are calling stored value a “coupon” because it's no longer a $60 seat with a $30 gift certificate. It’s now a $90 seat with a $30 coupon. If, however, someone buys additional value on their ticket through a customer portal, then the teams are subject to federal gift card laws.
VT: Which teams are implementing stored value?
SD: The Phillies are using Paciolan software and they’ve developed their own system. The Giants will be using Uptix this season with ProVenue. The competitor is a company called STADIS, which has launched stored value with the Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
VT: What is your projected growth for Uptix?
SD: Within the next few years, a majority of the sports and entertainment organizations that have a lot of season tickets will have some type of stored value product. It intrigues everyone. The key is getting your arms around it on a venue-by-venue basis and deciding what you want to accomplish.
Learn more about Tickets.com ticketing technologies >
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Royals, Indians will join MLB clubs selling stored-value tickets
Sports Business Journal
By DON MURET
Staff writer
The Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Indians will introduce stored-value tickets at their ballparks this season, bringing to eight the number of clubs that will have the technology in place on Opening Day.
Loaded tickets are a ballpark admission with credit to buy food, drink and merchandise loaded into the bar code and folded into the price of a ticket.
The Royals are benching their all-you-can-eat program in favor of loaded tickets in several parts of renovated Kauffman Stadium, including 190 seats in the Diamond Club boxes behind home plate.
Those $70 seats, available only as full-season tickets, include a $20 concessions credit, and were 75 percent sold as of last week, said Mark Tilson, the Royals’ vice president of marketing and ticket sales.
The Indians will roll out their program at Progressive Field to a small number of season-ticket holders, said spokesman Curtis Danburg. The team will expand the program to include groups and single-game tickets later in the season.In addition, the New York Mets plan to offer a combination of stored-value tickets and loyalty cards later in the season after making sure all systems work smoothly at Citi Field, their new billion-dollar ballpark, said Dave Howard, executive vice president of business operations.
The St. Louis Cardinals hope to sell loaded tickets at Busch Stadium, but nothing was firm as of last week, said Joe Strohm, vice president of ticket sales. The Arizona Diamondbacks will make a decision in February whether to offer stored-value tickets in 2009, spokesman Shaun Rachau said.
IMS, the software vendor supplying equipment to six MLB teams, has data dating to 2004, when the Philadelphia Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park and became the first club to use the concept. The information shows that fans holding loaded tickets spend 40 percent to 60 percent more on concessions than those without stored-value tickets, said Jeff Harvey, IMS’ vice president of sales.
The firm’s data also show that “breakage,” the industry term used to describe unused value on loaded tickets, can generate significant returns, averaging 36 percent, Harvey said. The Phillies’ breakage numbers are much smaller, according to John Weber, the team’s vice president of sales and ticket operations. The Phillies sold 90,000 “Power Tickets” containing a $10 credit, and breakage averaged 10 percent to 15 percent, Weber said.
In that case, breakage produced $90,000 to $135,000 in revenue, not including the park’s 350 Diamond Club seats with $30 in value. Still, it’s an element that weighed heavily in the Royals’ decision to use loaded tickets.“It’s a compelling part of the technology,” Tilson said. “The fact that it could pay for itself and ultimately lead to a legitimate revenue stream helped us make the decision to invest in the technology.”
In this recession, some teams don’t have the six-figure sum to pay for installing the software and hardware and back-of-house support. That’s the case at Minute Maid Park in Houston, said Bill Goren, the Astros’ director of ticket sales. “We would have to spend a lot of money [and] it’s not in the budget for this year,” Goren said.
The Royals spent $150,000 for their IMS system. In conjunction with Aramark, their new concessionaire, officials thought it made perfect sense to start promoting loaded tickets now that Kauffman Stadium’s two-year, $250 million renovation nears completion and they can make a fresh start with a redesigned seating bowl.
Stored-value tickets are also available in Kansas City for group sales, family four-pack promotions on Fridays and Sundays and single-game sales, available in increments as low as $5. There is no set limit on the number of tickets that can have value added, Tilson said.
The Royals sold a little more than 17,000 all-you-can-eat tickets in 2008, generating $455,000 in gross revenue. The common complaint among fans buying those tickets was a limited menu; loaded tickets now provide the opportunity for them to buy whatever they want, Tilson said.
“We are waiting to see the reaction of not having all-you-can-seat seats,” he said.
By DON MURET
Staff writer
The Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Indians will introduce stored-value tickets at their ballparks this season, bringing to eight the number of clubs that will have the technology in place on Opening Day.
Loaded tickets are a ballpark admission with credit to buy food, drink and merchandise loaded into the bar code and folded into the price of a ticket.
The Royals are benching their all-you-can-eat program in favor of loaded tickets in several parts of renovated Kauffman Stadium, including 190 seats in the Diamond Club boxes behind home plate.
Those $70 seats, available only as full-season tickets, include a $20 concessions credit, and were 75 percent sold as of last week, said Mark Tilson, the Royals’ vice president of marketing and ticket sales.
The Indians will roll out their program at Progressive Field to a small number of season-ticket holders, said spokesman Curtis Danburg. The team will expand the program to include groups and single-game tickets later in the season.In addition, the New York Mets plan to offer a combination of stored-value tickets and loyalty cards later in the season after making sure all systems work smoothly at Citi Field, their new billion-dollar ballpark, said Dave Howard, executive vice president of business operations.
The St. Louis Cardinals hope to sell loaded tickets at Busch Stadium, but nothing was firm as of last week, said Joe Strohm, vice president of ticket sales. The Arizona Diamondbacks will make a decision in February whether to offer stored-value tickets in 2009, spokesman Shaun Rachau said.
IMS, the software vendor supplying equipment to six MLB teams, has data dating to 2004, when the Philadelphia Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park and became the first club to use the concept. The information shows that fans holding loaded tickets spend 40 percent to 60 percent more on concessions than those without stored-value tickets, said Jeff Harvey, IMS’ vice president of sales.
The firm’s data also show that “breakage,” the industry term used to describe unused value on loaded tickets, can generate significant returns, averaging 36 percent, Harvey said. The Phillies’ breakage numbers are much smaller, according to John Weber, the team’s vice president of sales and ticket operations. The Phillies sold 90,000 “Power Tickets” containing a $10 credit, and breakage averaged 10 percent to 15 percent, Weber said.
In that case, breakage produced $90,000 to $135,000 in revenue, not including the park’s 350 Diamond Club seats with $30 in value. Still, it’s an element that weighed heavily in the Royals’ decision to use loaded tickets.“It’s a compelling part of the technology,” Tilson said. “The fact that it could pay for itself and ultimately lead to a legitimate revenue stream helped us make the decision to invest in the technology.”
In this recession, some teams don’t have the six-figure sum to pay for installing the software and hardware and back-of-house support. That’s the case at Minute Maid Park in Houston, said Bill Goren, the Astros’ director of ticket sales. “We would have to spend a lot of money [and] it’s not in the budget for this year,” Goren said.
The Royals spent $150,000 for their IMS system. In conjunction with Aramark, their new concessionaire, officials thought it made perfect sense to start promoting loaded tickets now that Kauffman Stadium’s two-year, $250 million renovation nears completion and they can make a fresh start with a redesigned seating bowl.
Stored-value tickets are also available in Kansas City for group sales, family four-pack promotions on Fridays and Sundays and single-game sales, available in increments as low as $5. There is no set limit on the number of tickets that can have value added, Tilson said.
The Royals sold a little more than 17,000 all-you-can-eat tickets in 2008, generating $455,000 in gross revenue. The common complaint among fans buying those tickets was a limited menu; loaded tickets now provide the opportunity for them to buy whatever they want, Tilson said.
“We are waiting to see the reaction of not having all-you-can-seat seats,” he said.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
SF Giants to test info-storing ticket program
DM News - Lauren Bell
Tickets.com and closed loop card technologies company Givex have launched Uptix — a program that stores additional value and information on event tickets. The San Francisco Giants will be testing the program at their 16th annual FanFest in February.
With Uptix, cash value, select merchandise and other data can be stored on individual tickets, which eventgoers can then redeem at points of purchase. Uptix also can be used for points-based loyalty programs that track what consumers buy with their tickets and for promotions during events. Consumers will be able to manage Uptix accounts through an online portal.
“Uptix helps us enhance our overall fan experience,” said Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants, in a statement. “Its built-in flexibility allows us to exercise tremendous creativity in conducting a wide variety of special offers and in-game promotions for our fans, even down to the section and seat levels.”
Steve DeMots, Tickets.com's SVP of business development, credited the Philadelphia Phillies as the inspiration behind Uptix. The Phillies developed and launched a similar program for the opening of Citizens Bank Ballpark in 2004.
“[That program] was popular enough and caused enough interest that we wanted to get ahead of the curve — offering it to all "new">Tickets.com clients,” DeMots said, adding that “growing demand to find additional revenue streams for the sports and entertainment industry,” also pushed the company to develop Uptix.
The large season ticket holder numbers for MLB, NHL and NBA make all of these leagues potential clients for Uptix, DeMots said.
“It gives us a key differentiator in the ticketing industry, as what we will be able to offer by going with a partner like GiveX is much more than the other vendors who might try to build this functionality themselves,” DeMots concluded.
Tickets.com will be selling Uptix technology as a license.
Tickets.com and closed loop card technologies company Givex have launched Uptix — a program that stores additional value and information on event tickets. The San Francisco Giants will be testing the program at their 16th annual FanFest in February.
With Uptix, cash value, select merchandise and other data can be stored on individual tickets, which eventgoers can then redeem at points of purchase. Uptix also can be used for points-based loyalty programs that track what consumers buy with their tickets and for promotions during events. Consumers will be able to manage Uptix accounts through an online portal.
“Uptix helps us enhance our overall fan experience,” said Russ Stanley, managing vice president of ticket services and client relations for the San Francisco Giants, in a statement. “Its built-in flexibility allows us to exercise tremendous creativity in conducting a wide variety of special offers and in-game promotions for our fans, even down to the section and seat levels.”
Steve DeMots, Tickets.com's SVP of business development, credited the Philadelphia Phillies as the inspiration behind Uptix. The Phillies developed and launched a similar program for the opening of Citizens Bank Ballpark in 2004.
“[That program] was popular enough and caused enough interest that we wanted to get ahead of the curve — offering it to all "new">Tickets.com clients,” DeMots said, adding that “growing demand to find additional revenue streams for the sports and entertainment industry,” also pushed the company to develop Uptix.
The large season ticket holder numbers for MLB, NHL and NBA make all of these leagues potential clients for Uptix, DeMots said.
“It gives us a key differentiator in the ticketing industry, as what we will be able to offer by going with a partner like GiveX is much more than the other vendors who might try to build this functionality themselves,” DeMots concluded.
Tickets.com will be selling Uptix technology as a license.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Givex and Tickets.com Launch New Uptix™ Stored Value Ticket Program
7 Jan 2009 (Atlanta, GA) – Givex, a global provider of closed loop card technologies including gift, loyalty, and other stored value programs, and Tickets.com, a leading ticketing solutions provider for live events, today announced the launch of Uptix™, a jointly developed program for storing additional value on event tickets. Integrating Givex technology with Tickets.com’s ticketing solutions; the Uptix™ program allows individual tickets to have the ability to store data such as cash value and select merchandise. These tickets can then be used for redemption at various points of purchase such as concessions and retail stands. The program augments the role of a ticket beyond that of event access, and even allows single ticket buyers and season ticket holders to manage the program themselves on the Internet.
“This will be the must have feature in the ticketing industry,” says Dan DeMato, President of FutureTix Inc., a ticketing solutions and development consulting firm enlisted by Givex to help with the launch of Uptix™. “Organizations will now be able to offer a complete entertainment experience utilizing a single event ticket.”
Enabled tickets may also serve as a catalyst for in-game promotions, eventually including a point-based loyalty program where customers can accumulate and redeem points for rewards.
Russ Stanley, Managing Vice President, Ticket Services and Client Relations, San Francisco Giants, states “Uptix™ helps us enhance our overall fan experience. Its built-in flexibility allows us to exercise tremendous creativity in conducting a wide variety of special offers and in-game promotions for our fans, even down to the section and seat levels.”
The Giants will begin testing the Uptix™ program for their upcoming 16th annual FanFest in early February of this year. Uptix™ will also be available for viewing at this year’s National Sports Forum being held in Phoenix, AZ, January 26-28.
The innovative Uptix™ stored value program aligns with Tickets.com’s philosophy on partnerships and its commitment to providing the latest in ticketing technology to its clients. “Givex has years of proven technology in the gift card industry and an exceptional track record in customer service,” says Steve DeMots, Senior Vice President of Business Development, Tickets.com. “We are pleased to be able to work with Givex to create such a user-friendly product that will help our clients generate incremental sales and marketing opportunities.”
Karen Budahazy, Executive Vice President, Givex, concurs “Uptix™ represents an intense collaborative effort between us and Tickets.com. The company’s focus on technology fits well with our vision to expand into the sports and entertainment industries. In seeing the product’s potential and extensive benefits to both clients and their fans, we cannot be more thrilled about the launch of Uptix™.”
About Givex
Givex is known for innovative stored-value technology that has driven customer acquisition and retention programs for clients in 35 countries since 1999. Givex provides a broad range of profit enhancing processes that seamlessly integrate gift cards, loyalty engines, e-couponing and targeted email campaigns. This innovation is also backed up by years of experience and the relentless pursuit of excellence that defines our technology and client support. Find out more at www.givex.com.
About Tickets.com
Tickets.com is a leading provider of fully integrated event ticketing solutions for thousands of top arts, entertainment, and sports organizations worldwide. Delivering the latest in ticketing technology, Tickets.com offers the advanced ProVenue® ticketing platform, which serves as the core of a comprehensive suite of integrated features, products, and services that help clients enhance ticket sales, marketing efforts, and overall customer experience. A privately held subsidiary of MLB Advanced Media, LP, since 2005, Tickets.com is headquartered in Costa Mesa, CA, and has regional offices across the U.S. and around the world. The company also sells tickets directly to consumers at www.tickets.com.
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