Europe is K-pop’s fastest growing market, according to a new report. While countries in Asia and Oceania were still the predominant market for Korean pop culture content, otherwise known as ‘hallyu’, Europe has seen a 37% increase in K-pop fans compared to the year before. According to non-profit organisation Korea Foundation’s Global Hallyu report, which …

CTS Eventim’s preliminary results showcase strong year
Ticketing and live entertainment services company CTS Eventim has delivered a strong business performance in 2022, according to its preliminary results. While the full report for last year will be published at the end of March, CTS Eventim has said that consolidated revenue rose by 372% year on year, from €408m (£363m/$434m) in 2021 to …

Seat Unique brings in Simeon Klein as European general manager
Premium ticketing marketplace Seat Unique has appointed Simeon Klein (pictured main) as its European general manager. Klein boasts vast experience across tech sales and growth, and even founded his own TV production company. He has also held roles within unicorn start-up Gett, which secured $800m (£670,000/€775,000m) in funding and provided businesses with a global mobility …

Germany’s 18-year-olds offered culture pass to boost arts sector
German teenagers turning 18 will be offered a €200 (£175/$208) culture pass as a birthday present from the Government, to rekindle an interest in arts and live entertainment following the COVID-19 pandemic. The €200 ‘Kulturpass’ will aim to encourage young adults to experience live culture, get outside and give a financial boost to the arts …

Viagogo fined €23.5m by Italian communications regulatory authority
Ticketing resale platform Viagogo has been fined €23.5m (£20m/$25m) by Italy’s communications regulatory authority AGCOM for breaking the country’s rules on secondary ticketing. Viagogo was given seven days to remove the illegal listings from its site by AGCOM (Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni). The decision was made by AGCOM at a council meeting on …

Europe’s live performance sector calls for tougher regulations
More than 130 organisations and representatives from across Europe’s live performance sector have signed an open letter calling for the European Union (EU) to introduce tougher laws on online ticket scalping. The EU is currently in the midst of negotiating rules for a Digital Services Act, a regulation that has been designed to manage the …

Tomorrowland festival sells out 600,000 tickets
Belgium’s Tomorrowland festival has sold 600,000 passes for its 2022 festival. The event has been cancelled for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the sell-out demonstrating Europe’s pent-up demand for live music festivals. Belgium’s flagship festival will return in-person for the first time since 2019 with three weekends in July in …

European K-Pop festival adds new date due to high demand
K-Pop festival KPOP.FLEX has added a second day to its programme due to a demand for tickets from across Europe. The festival in Frankfurt is organised by K-Pop Europa, in collaboration with PK Events and Korean broadcaster SBS Television Network. K-Pop Europa is a partnership between live events companies Live Company Group and Explorado Group. …

Green group reveals most environmentally friendly festivals
A Greener Festival (AGF), a not-for-profit company that assists events, festivals and venues in reducing their environmental impact, has revealed its selection of the greenest events and festivals from last year. Events across Europe, the UK and the US were hailed for the environmental efforts. Paradise City Festival, an electronic music festival in Perk, Belgium, …

Crowd Dynamics International calls for participants for CrowdDNA project
Crowd Dynamics International, the observatories lead partner of a European-wide project, CrowdDNA, is calling for events and venues to participate in the research. The project will look into crowd behaviour and how to implement efficient crowd management in urban areas, transport hubs, stadia and at large events. It is funded by the European Commission’s Horizon …