Looking to capitalize on its 180 million-name fan database, Live Nation’s Ticketmaster division is launching LiveAnalytics, a new venture which the company said in an announcement today, March 15, is aimed at producing “rich data analytics products that provide clients fan insights for their business.”
The new venture, powered by a new partnership between the company and database and analytics experts Teradata, will offer Ticketmaster’s more than 11,000 clients information on customer preferences, ticketing trends, industry benchmarks and other customized data to give clients insight into how, where and to whom they should sell tickets. The division will be run by former Motally and Nielsen Company executive John Forese, who has years of experiencing in research, analytics and marketing.
Details of which clients will have access to specific data, in addition to how they will access it and how privacy will be maintained, were not disclosed.
Though Ticketmaster is far and away the dominant ticketing company in the U.S., it is beginning to feel the heat of increased competition in the industry since it merged with Live Nation last year. Much of that competition, led by AEG/Outbox Technology and Comcast-Spectacor, has made inroads into Ticketmaster’s market share through “white label” ticketing solutions, back office software systems that allow venues and teams brand their ticket sales through their own Web sites, not through Ticketmaster.com.
Ticketmaster is looking to have it both ways, by helping clients sell tickets through Ticketmaster.com and through their own Web sites. Live Nation Chairman Irving Azoff hinted at this plan in an interview with Billboard a few weeks ago.
Nathan Hubbard, CEO of Ticketmaster, believes the new venture will make Ticketmaster an even more attractive option for venues, teams and promoters looking to sell more tickets. On his Twitter page, Hubbard bragged to a follower that with LiveAnalytics, “this ain’t your daddy’s [Ticketmaster].”
According to data released by LiveAnalytics, 61 percent of Americans polled last year attended at least one live entertainment event, and 35 to 44 year olds attended an average of 10 live entertainment events in 2010.
“The launch of LiveAnalytics is a key step in our plan to further build on the value we bring to our clients in helping them connect with fans and to ultimately sell more tickets,” Hubbard said in a statement. “We plan on being the global leader in fan data insights and consulting that will bring a new level of service and knowledge to our client base.”
