WOS Launches New Theatre Ticket Resale ServiceDate: 16 December 2008
Whatsonstage.com today launches the UK’s first dedicated theatre ticket resale service, after signing a deal with viagogo, Europe’s leading secondary ticketing company.
The Whatsonstage.com Ticket Exchange provides theatre fans with a safe, secure and guaranteed environment where they can buy and sell their tickets to top West End shows such as Oliver!, Hairspray, Jersey Boys, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Dirty Dancing, Mamma Mia!, Waiting for Godot starring Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, Rain Man starring Josh Hartnett and Three Days of Rain starring James McAvoy and Nigel Harman.
On the Whatsonstage.com Ticket Exchange, tight controls are being put in place to preserve the pricing of productions mounted at non-profit, publicly funded institutions such as the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, where David Tennant’s Hamlet caused an unprecedented frenzy at the box office earlier this year. Resale tickets for subsidised theatre productions will be capped at a maximum of 25 percent above face value and customers will have an opportunity to donate a portion of the sale directly back to the relevant theatre company.
David Dobson, managing director of Whatsonstage.com, said: “Theatre can be an expensive pastime, especially when you pay out for tickets that, for whatever reason, you’re no longer able to use. Across the many West End theatres and sales outlets, there’s no consistent policy on refunds and exchanges.
“Now, as the credit crunch deepens and everyone is tightening their belts, there is a real alternative to just writing off the loss. As the standout market leader in secondary ticketing, viagogo was the ideal partner to help us make the Whatsonstage.com Ticket Exchange a reality.”
The new Ticket Exchange builds on an existing facility on Whatsonstage.com’s active user discussion forum, where, for the past two years, theatregoers have been able to post details of tickets for performances they’re no longer able to attend. The viagogo technology takes this much further, enabling live online purchases at no risk, with every transaction guaranteed for both buyer and seller.
viagogo is now Whatsonstage.com’s official secondary ticketing partner. The deal follows the recent announcement that viagogo has become the Official Premium Ticketing Partner of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group.
Eric Baker, CEO of viagogo said: “viagogo has become the trusted destination for fans of live sport and music. Now theatregoers can buy and sell tickets to all the leading productions in a 100% safe and secure environment.”
Online secondary ticketing was pioneered in the UK when Baker launched viagogo in August 2006; since then, the market has grown by over 200%. The overall value of the secondary ticket market in the UK – including sports, concert and event tickets – is now approximately £1 billion. Currently, theatre represents 10% of the market, ie £100 million per annum. Though ticket inflation stories attract the headlines, more than half of the tickets traded on viagogo last year sold for face value or less.
In recognition of the fact that ticket reselling is not going to go away, STAR (the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers, which is the primary regulatory body for companies that sell theatre tickets in particular) held a special general meeting last week (8 December 2008) to propose widening membership to include secondary ticket companies. The vote has now been opened to all 100+ members and a result is expected in the new year.
The Whatsonstage.com Ticket Exchange can be found at:
www.whatsonstage.com/ticketexchange
Related Content
