Ticketmaster is a global ticket sales and distribution company that provides ticketing services for many of the world’s top entertainment events. From concerts and sports games to theater shows and festivals, Ticketmaster works with venues and event organizers to sell tickets to fans and consumers.
What Does Ticketmaster Do?
As a leading ticketing provider, Ticketmaster offers a platform and technology that lets event organizers sell tickets directly to fans online, over the phone, or in person at box offices. Ticketmaster’s services include:
- A ticketing platform and API that venues and event organizers can use to build and manage ticketing
- Ticketing websites, mobile apps, and phone services that allow consumers to browse events and purchase tickets
- Marketing and analytics tools for event organizers to track ticket sales, promote shows, and understand their audiences
- Onsite box office software and equipment that major venues and festivals use to manage ticket purchases and admissions
- A large resale ticket exchange where fans can safely buy and resell tickets
In essence, Ticketmaster handles all the technology, sales, and distribution services that allow live events to sell tickets and generate revenue from audiences. The company sells over 500 million tickets per year and partners with client venues and event organizers globally to power their ticket sales.
Who Uses Ticketmaster for Ticketing?
Ticketmaster serves a wide range of entertainment organizations and venues as clients. Some of their major clients include:
Concert Tours and Music Festivals
Ticketmaster provides ticketing services for many major concert tours and music festivals globally. Some music artists, promoters, and festival brands that use Ticketmaster ticketing include:
- Live Nation concert tours and festivals like Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, and Bonnaroo
- AEG tours and festivals like Coachella, Stagecoach, and Firefly Music Festival
- Major artists like Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, Jay-Z, and Billy Joel
- Electronic dance music festivals like Ultra Music Festival and Electric Daisy Carnival
- Tours by legacy rock artists like The Rolling Stones, Elton John, and The Eagles
Ticketmaster sells the majority of tickets for North America’s top tours and music festivals, providing them ticketing infrastructure to sell millions of tickets per year.
Professional Sports Teams and Leagues
Ticketmaster tickets thousands of major professional sporting events. Some sports partners include:
- The NFL and ticketing for individual teams like the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks
- The NHL and NHL teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vegas Golden Knights
- The NBA and NBA teams like the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers
- MLB teams including the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and San Francisco Giants
- MLS teams like Los Angeles FC, Atlanta United FC, and D.C. United
- NASCAR auto racing series
Ticketmaster provides ticketing services for over 150 major sports teams and leagues, demonstrating their dominance in sports ticketing.
Theaters and Performing Arts Venues
In theater and the performing arts, Ticketmaster tickets these major clients:
- Broadway theaters in New York for hit musicals like Hamilton, Wicked, The Lion King, and Dear Evan Hansen
- UK West End theaters in London
- North American venues for Disney’s The Lion King musical
- Resident Cirque du Soleil productions in Las Vegas and Orlando
- Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.
- San Francisco’s SHN theaters
You’ll find Ticketmaster ticketing at most major Broadway, West End, and Las Vegas productions.
Arenas, Stadiums, Theaters, and Clubs
Ticketmaster provides ticketing software, services, and equipment to major venues across segments including:
- Large multipurpose indoor arenas like New York’s Madison Square Garden, Los Angeles’ Staples Center, and Chicago’s United Center
- Outdoor stadiums like Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and the Rose Bowl
- Historic theaters like Radio City Music Hall in New York
- Concert clubs and theaters like the Hollywood Bowl, Shoreline Amphitheatre, and Red Rocks Amphitheatre
- Hundreds of convention centers, clubs, theaters, and other venues globally
Venues large and small partner with Ticketmaster for their ticketing needs year-round.
How Does Ticketmaster Make Money?
Ticketmaster utilizes several business models and ticketing services to generate profits:
Service and Processing Fees on Tickets Sold
For every ticket sold, Ticketmaster collects services fees and processing charges added onto the base ticket price. These can range from a few dollars to over 10% of the base ticket price. As one of the largest primary ticket outlets, these fees make up a significant revenue stream when Ticketmaster moves over 400 million tickets per year.
Platform Service Contracts
Many venues and promoters pay Ticketmaster annual platform fees to utilize their ticketing platform and services. These long-term contracts provide Ticketmaster with recurring ticketing revenues.
Ticketing Equipment and Software
Ticketing requires specialized point-of-sale hardware and software. Venues pay Ticketmaster for box office equipment, custom ticketing software, and technology maintenance.
Ticket Resale Fees
On Ticketmaster’s ticket resale exchange, they collect commissions on ticket resales. Fans pay a fee when reselling event tickets to another fan through Ticketmaster’s exchange.
Data and Analytics
As a byproduct of processing ticketing transactions, Ticketmaster gains valuable data on ticket buyers. They monetize this data by offering event organizers detailed marketing analytics and fan identification tools.
Key Takeaways on Ticketmaster’s Clients
In summary, Ticketmaster sells tickets for clients across major live entertainment categories:
- Concerts: Tours, festivals, clubs
- Sports: Teams, leagues across NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and more
- Theater: Broadway, West End, Vegas shows, performing arts
- Venues: Arenas, stadiums, theaters, convention centers
Their client base includes the biggest names across live entertainment – from major artists and Broadway shows to pro sports leagues and famous venues. This gives Ticketmaster a dominant position in ticketing and lets them process over $30 billion in ticket sales annually.
Ticketmaster Client Examples
Here are some examples of Ticketmaster’s clients in table form:
| Category | Example Clients |
|---|---|
| Concerts | Taylor Swift, Coachella, Lollapalooza |
| Sports | New York Knicks, Boston Red Sox, NFL |
| Theater | Hamilton, The Lion King, Cirque du Soleil |
| Venues | Madison Square Garden, Shoreline Amphitheatre, Hollywood Bowl |
This table provides examples of the major brands and organizations Ticketmaster partners with across live entertainment. Their client base spans top artists, popular sports franchises, critically acclaimed theater productions, and famous venues.
How Ticketmaster Ticketing Works
Ticketmaster sits between venues/event organizers and ticket buyers, supporting the ticketing process through:
- Inventory Management: Ticketmaster’s platform lets venues/promoters load in event details, ticket prices, seat maps, and manage ticket inventory.
- Direct Sales: Consumers can buy tickets directly via Ticketmaster online, phone, mobile app, and box offices.
- Distributed Channels: Tickets are also sold through affiliate and promoter websites that connect to Ticketmaster’s ticketing API.
- Fee Processing: Service, handling, and processing fees are added to ticket costs during purchases.
- Ticket Resale Marketplace: Fans can resell tickets via Ticketmaster’s resale exchange and buyers can purchase secondhand tickets.
This full-service ticketing approach allows Ticketmaster to handle the end-to-end process on behalf of clients – from ticketing inventory and direct sales to resale ticket marketplace.
Key Ticketing Platforms and Tools
Ticketmaster utilizes several proprietary ticketing platforms, tools, and services:
Ticketmaster Online – Website and Mobile Apps
Ticketmaster.com and their mobile apps allow fans to easily search events, view seat maps, and purchase event tickets online for Ticketmaster client venues/events.
ArchTix – Box Office Ticketing Software
ArchTix is Ticketmaster’s proprietary box office and on-site ticketing management software for venues.
Presence – Venue Access Control
Presence is Ticketmaster’s access control and security management platform used by venues to scan tickets and manage customer entry.
LiveAnalytics – Data and Insights
LiveAnalytics provides event organizers and venues with data-driven ticketing insights and fan analytics.
Conclusion
In summary, Ticketmaster provides industry-leading ticketing services for premier live entertainment brands across concerts, sports, theater, and venues. Their platform handles high-volume ticket sales for events ranging from major music festivals and sold-out tours to pro sporting events and Broadway blockbusters.
With a dominant position in ticketing and long-term partnerships across live entertainment, Ticketmaster delivers secure, reliable ticketing services global audiences rely on to purchase billions of tickets every year.