If you purchased Warped Tour tickets this year, you probably went through Ticketmaster. Except if you went to the recently-staged event in Ventura, CA, where Eventbrite stealthily injected itself as an experimental ticketing provider. Pretty sneaky, huh?
Well, if the strategy is to chip away at the behemoth, it seems to be working. The Ventura gig actually happened on the 3rd, though the various parties were very happy with the deal—andrecently agreed to say it out loud. “Partnering with Eventbrite improved our experience before, during, and after the concert," Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman said. “Our sales were up; check-in with Eventbrite's on-site operations team kept the crowd moving through the gates quickly; and the data that Eventbrite was able to provide offered far more insight into our attendees than any ticketing platform we've used before."
Among the data points, Eventbrite pointed to a 60 percent gain in pre-sale tickets year-over-year. On top of that, 81 percent were first-time attendees, though we're not clear how that compares to last year. There was nothing really happening in the aftermarket, since the show didn't sell out.
Meanwhile, Eventbrite is also attacking Ticketmaster around service fees, a complicated Achilles' Heel in this battle. Make no mistake, Eventbrite also has fees, they're just lower. “We feel it says a lot about using a ticketing platform that not only offers lower fees and a better buyer experience, but one that facilitates fan-fueled promotion," Eventbrite told Digital Music News.
All of that follows a plump, $50 million funding round led by Tiger Capital. Now, we're wondering where else Eventbrite is slithering in the grass. “Eventbrite will continue to deepen its relationship with the music industry," the company vaguely promised.
Well, if the strategy is to chip away at the behemoth, it seems to be working. The Ventura gig actually happened on the 3rd, though the various parties were very happy with the deal—andrecently agreed to say it out loud. “Partnering with Eventbrite improved our experience before, during, and after the concert," Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman said. “Our sales were up; check-in with Eventbrite's on-site operations team kept the crowd moving through the gates quickly; and the data that Eventbrite was able to provide offered far more insight into our attendees than any ticketing platform we've used before."
Among the data points, Eventbrite pointed to a 60 percent gain in pre-sale tickets year-over-year. On top of that, 81 percent were first-time attendees, though we're not clear how that compares to last year. There was nothing really happening in the aftermarket, since the show didn't sell out.
Meanwhile, Eventbrite is also attacking Ticketmaster around service fees, a complicated Achilles' Heel in this battle. Make no mistake, Eventbrite also has fees, they're just lower. “We feel it says a lot about using a ticketing platform that not only offers lower fees and a better buyer experience, but one that facilitates fan-fueled promotion," Eventbrite told Digital Music News.
All of that follows a plump, $50 million funding round led by Tiger Capital. Now, we're wondering where else Eventbrite is slithering in the grass. “Eventbrite will continue to deepen its relationship with the music industry," the company vaguely promised.
