StubHub, the nation’s largest secondary ticket marketplace according to TicketNews’ exclusive industry rankings, has signed a mobile ticketing deal with sports television giant ESPN, the companies announced today, June 8.
The deal marks StubHub’s second move into the mobile ticketing arena this month, following the recent launch of an iPhone/iPod Touch app for selling tickets.
Mobile ticketing is currently more pervasive in Europe, but the technology is catching on in the U.S. as cell phone usage becomes increasingly more ubiquitous. According to a recent report by Juniper Research, by 2014, at least one in 10 mobile phone users will buy a ticket or have it delivered to their cell phone, which includes event tickets or travel tickets.
Tickets.com and UK-based secondary ticket company Seatwave are among the competitors that also offer mobile ticketing options for fans.
“We’re definitely looking to continue to innovate in the mobile space,” Glenn Lehrman, spokesperson for StubHub, told TicketNews. He added that the company will likely launch an app specifically for Apple’s new iPad in the near future. “Right now eCommerce represents about 5 percent of marketshare, but experts anticipate that may grow to 15-20 percent in the next few years, so we feel this will be a vital part of our business moving forward.”
The mobile ticketing solution between StubHub and ESPN will allow fans to buy tickets from their cell phones through ESPN’s ScoreCenter App and ESPN’s mobile Web site. When they go to buy a ticket, purchasers will be directed to StubHub’s mobile checkout, where they can pay for the ticket with their StubHub account, credit card or PayPal account.
“Bringing our ticket platform to ESPN’s mobile properties marks an exciting step in our ongoing collaboration with the worldwide leader in sports,” said Ray Elias, StubHub’s director of marketing, in a statement.