FanDragon Technologies, a new startup hailing from West Hollywood, has raised $12 million to develop ticket software meant to fight ticket fraud.
The technology, spearheaded by the former head of media advisory and investment firm Arpanet Group, Robert Weiss, did not disclose any of its funding. The FanDragon team has been collaborating with Aventus to design a next-generation blockchain-powered SaaS platform, which aims to improve transparency during the ticket-selling process. FanDragon is set to work with companies across the board, including businesses relating to “sporting events, concerts, theater, cinema, and theme parks.”
“I am honored to be leading FanDragon. This is an exciting time to be innovating in the ticketing space,” Weiss said in a press release. “Fans and rightsholders need help. Everyone is negatively impacted by software bots and scalpers that drive up prices, counterfeiting organizations that scam venues and fans and the overall lack of transparency in the ticketing industry today. We need a better way to protect the fan experience and decrease fraud.
“The FanDragon team is thrilled to provide all that through our unique technology and forever improve the ticket-delivery experience.”
FanDragon does not sell tickets, but provides solutions for clients to integrate into normal business processes. Blockchain entrepreneurs and Aventus founders Annika Monari and Alan Vey said that the Aventus Protocol was designed to address consumer frustration, give talent and venues the option of enforcing pricing, and improve confidence around selling and buying tickets, noting that with Weiss’ help leading successful executive teams, he “will bring our vision of an improved mobile ticketing industry to life.”
While Weiss did not name specific companies FanDragon is targeting, the startup could have its eyes on some big-league names. Live Nation, which currently controls a majority of the primary ticket market, made headlines last week after the company admitted that artists scalp their own tickets. The news, which was first reported by Billboard, has made people within the industry take a second look at both the primary and secondary market and how they coincide with one another. The ticketing giant has sparked concern, leaving a perfect leeway for FanDragon to enter the scene.
“The ticketing business is simultaneously exploding with innovation but also consolidating,” Weiss said. “This is a time when we need innovation to continue. Tickets rightsholders and fans deserve some alternative solutions in the marketplace.”
