The founder of ticket discovery platform Goldstar has launched a new live streaming and ticketing service called Stellar to support theatre and concert organisations through COVID-19 and beyond.
Jim McCarthy has co-founded the service to enable producers and artists to sell tickets to online events, stream to a global audience, and manage payments.
Stellar, which is currently in its beta development phase, has hosted more than 30 shows on its platform since July and describes itself as “the first-ever Total Show Management System (TSM) for online live events”.
Stellar’s partners can promote events to Goldstar’s more than 10,000 subscribers, at no additional cost. It will also provide advice to support producers through the process of streaming an event.
The livestreaming platform takes a percentage of the tickets sold and is planning for a more formal unveiling in October.
McCarthy told Variety: “We’re in a crisis. But I hope this encourages people to rethink their business models and to break down walls. Not only could this be enormously profitable, it could also let people who would not normally have access to a show get to see theatre. That could build up our fanbase. We need to seize this moment.”
Some 600 organisations are reportedly reviewing the technology to determine if it meets their needs, Variety reports.
McCarthy said Stellar was formed after the popularity and demand of virtual concerts and events became more apparent during the COVID-19 lockdown, which severely decimated the live entertainment industry overnight.
He said: “Some of those first quarantine shows were a little informal, but the material started to dramatically improve as people got more accustomed to the format. It became a lot more professional.”
The platform is planning to host live events including the global finale performance of the Geffen Playhouse’s The Present on October 17, as well as the Playbill Virtual Theatre Festival Live from October 23-25, and weekly comedy hours streamed from DC Comedy Loft, among several others.
Robert Graff, chief technology officer of Goldstar, co-founded Stellar.
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