Industry News

Eventbrite snaps up Ticketscript

Eventbrite has acquired self-service ticketing provider Ticketscript in a move that expands the value of its European operations to more than €500m (£427m/$535m) per year.

Ticketscript, founded in 2006, is headquartered in Amsterdam and is active in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Belgium. Its chief executive, Frans Jonker, will join Eventbrite as general manager for continental Europe.

San Francisco-headquartered Eventbrite said the acquisition positions it as Europe’s third largest ticketing platform, and expands the company’s global prominence as a leading live music event technology partner, especially in clubs and live show venues.

“This acquisition supercharges Eventbrite’s footprint in Europe and brings 10 additional years of traction in the music space and experience in European markets to our business,” said Julia Hartz, chief executive of Eventbrite.

“It perfectly aligns with our strategic vision to become the world’s leading marketplace for live experiences, and adds significant assets and technical power to our platform. We are looking forward to this new partnership combining the best solutions from both companies, and bringing them to our customers around the world.”

In 2016 alone, Ticketscript and Eventbrite’s combined European operations processed more than 35 million tickets for nearly a million events.

Following the acquisition, around a quarter of Eventbrite’s global employees will work in Europe.

Jonker said: “We have been building significant market presence in Europe for ten years, with a focus on self-service ticketing for music events.

“We share Eventbrite’s passion for allowing event organisers to control their event marketing and ticketing, whilst retaining their end customer data. Joining forces with Eventbrite, the global innovation leader in event technology, will no doubt help further accelerate the digital transformation of the European live experience industry.”