O2 Priority struggles under weight of Beyoncé fans

Beyoncé fans rushed to secure tickets in the UK pre-sales ahead of the singer’s first solo tour in seven years.  O2 Priority customers were up first yesterday (Thursday), though the influx of fans attempting to purchase tickets for the Renaissance tour crashed the website and app. Fans also struggled in the O2 Priority queue on …

US arts organisations witness steep decline in subscription sales – study

JCA Arts Marketing, a division of consulting firm Jacob Consulting Applications (JCA), has recently revealed through a study of audience behaviour in the US that subscription sales for arts organisations have fallen sharply. The division aids arts and cultural organisations in utilising data to grow audiences and revenue, and its recent study has shown that …

Birmingham City signs up Seat Unique to power premium sales

Seat Unique will power online premium ticket and hospitality sales for English Championship club Birmingham City FC, in a three-and-a-half-year deal. Birmingham City fans will be able to purchase premium and hospitality options 24/7 through Seat Unique’s online platform.  The partnership began yesterday (Thursday) and premium tickets and hospitality packages for Birmingham City’s 2022-23 home …

Motorcycle festival Sturgis Buffalo Chip opts for Tixr commerce capabilities

Motorcycling festival Sturgis Buffalo Chip in South Dakota, US, has appointed Tixr as its commerce platform. Tixr will power sales of all campground admission passes, VIP concert upgrades, motorcycle rides, tent camping, RV camping, cabin rentals, limited edition merchandise and all additional amenities and services.  The music and lifestyle festival will return from August 4-13 …

RocketRez closes $15m Series B funding round

All-in-one ticketing and operations platform for tours and attractions, RocketRez, has closed a $15m (£12.2m/€13.8m) Series B funding round with growth capital firm, Level Equity.  RocketRez will use the new funding to extend its capabilities for new clients, as well as tours and attractions already in its portfolio including Maui Ocean Center, Xtreme Xperience, Aquarium …

President Biden calls for limits on concert and sporting ticket fees

US President Joe Biden has called on Ticketmaster and other companies to lower service fees which are often added to tickets for concerts or sporting events.  The President met with the Competition Council yesterday (Wednesday) and promoted his ‘Junk Fee Prevention Act’. This Act would also include restrictions on early cancellation charges imposed by TV, …

The Jockey Club makes dress code change to be more inclusive

The Jockey Club has announced that formal dress codes will no longer be enforced at any of its 15 racecourses, to make horse racing more accessible and inclusive to all.  Racegoers will no longer be restricted from watching the action from certain enclosures based on what they are wearing. Attendees will now be encouraged to …

US indie promoters join forces to form LiveCo

Independent promoters have teamed up in the US to create a new company to help expand the live entertainment industry.  LiveCo brings together Base Entertainment, Premier Productions, Icon Concerts, Rush Concerts and Peachtree Entertainment, with financial backing from Waterland Private Equity. Leading the team will be Brian Beck, who has previously served as chief operating …

Seat Unique teams up with Robomagic

Seat Unique has become the official hospitality and premium ticketing platform of independent tour and concert promoter, Robomagic.  The partnership will see Seat Unique power premium ticket and hospitality sales for rock band The Who’s 2023 UK tour dates this summer. The British band (pictured) will perform at venues including The O2 in London, the …

Ed Sheeran’s record Wellington crowd 

Ed Sheeran’s Sky Stadium concert in Wellington, New Zealand could have hosted a record-breaking crowd of 48,000.  The total would beat an Eminem concert in March 2019, which welcomed 46,474 fans. Thursday’s concert was sold out and organisers said roughly 16,200 of the ticket holders were from outside of the Wellington region. Sky Stadium chief …