The secondary ticketing company, StubHub, has announced the launch of a new interactive seating map for mobile devices. The first of its kind for ticketing, the interactive seating map for mobile devices will take the already popular mobile app to another level for the consumer. StubHub was launched in 2000 and purchased by eBay in 2007 for an estimated $310 million. The company bills itself as “the world’s largest marketplace” and continues to build its online and mobile platforms.
According to StubHub, mobile device users account for approximately 20 percent of all site traffic. With the creation of interactive seating maps for mobile devices, users will now be able to more effectively use the app to select and purchase tickets.
The advances to the mobile app and mobile website will allow consumers to choose individual seating sections and see the range of prices available throughout the section as well as view the sightlines from the section. The new interactive map feature will be immediately available for purchases of NFL tickets. It will be rolled out for additional events and venues in the future. StubHub has a deal with the NFL as the official secondary ticketing source for the league’s 32 teams.
In the press release announcing the new seating map, Ray Elias, Chief Marketing Officer at StubHub, heralded the advancement as one that will benefit both consumers and StubHub. “This is long overdue, and we’re excited to be extending the same great StubHub experience our customers have grown accustomed to on their computers, to their mobile devices,” said Elias. “We have millions of StubHub buyers sorting through thousands of ticket listings on their mobile devices, and that can be pretty cumbersome on a fraction of the real estate. Our interactive maps will dramatically improve this experience for fans.”
The new mobile interactive maps will be available on both the Android and iPhone operating systems. It is expected that the mobile launch will begin with the iOS and move onto additional mobile systems. There is no word on whether or not the mobile interactive map will be released on the Blackberry operating system.
StubHub has also announced that its mobile app on iOS 6 will now be integrated with Apple Passbook. This will allow iPhone users the option to store tickets they have purchased through StubHub on their iPhone and allow them to use their iPhone as their ticket to the event. The first two venues to be initiated into the new system were the University of Texas and Purdue University. Additional partners are expected to be announced in the coming months.
In addition, StubHub has announced that it will be rolling out 3D maps for both its online site and mobile site and applications. Using the technology acquired from the company’s recent acquisition of Peekspy, the maps will allow consumers 3D views of all venues. Currently, only MLB stadiums are available online, but StubHub has plans to make additional venues available in the coming months.
