‘Fair to fans’ UK ticketing app Twickets has added high-profile music industry figures to its board of investors – who clearly see the company as a way to reduce activity on the much-criticised secondary ticketing market.
The founding board of investors includes managers and entrepreneurs from the world of music, entertainment and sport, including Tony Wadsworth (former chairman of EMI Music and chairman of the BPI), Harry Magee and Richard Griffiths (Modest Management [One Direction, 5SOS, Cheryl Cole, Olly Murs], Ian McAndrew (Wildlife Entertainment [Arctic Monkeys, Royal Blood]), Steve Parish (Chairman and co-owner of Premier League Football Club, Crystal Palace FC) and Chris Wright (founder Chrysalis Records, former owner QPR FC and former Chairman Wasps rugby club).
Twickets allows event goers to trade spare tickets for music, theatre and sporting events with fellow fans for no more than face value. It launched in 2011 and has grown to in excess of 250,000 UK users to date.
Live Nation recently reported that gross revenues on its secondary ticketing market place jumped 55% to $900m in 2014 – although much of that cash would have ended up in the pockets of individual resellers.
Twickets founder Richard Davies will also sit on the board. He said: “I am delighted to welcome such an illustrious and well-connected group of experts to help with the growth of Twickets and am especially pleased that they all share my desire to see change in the ticket re-sale market.
“With their help and expertise we can continue to grow our rapidly expanding community in the UK and internationally, providing a secure and transparent way for genuine fans of everything from music and theatre to sport, to exchange their tickets with one another.”
“We don’t like seeing our fans ripped off by the secondary ticketing market. We are delighted to give our full backing to twickets.”
Richard Griffiths, Modest! Management
Modest Management’s Richard Griffiths added: “The live show is at the heart of the modern music business. We work very hard with our artists to provide a truly memorable performance and we price our shows so that fans get value for money.
“We don’t like to see our fans being ripped off by the secondary market, so as Parliament is unwilling to make their practices illegal we are delighted to give our full backing and support to Twickets – an ethical alternative that provides a fair and transparent ‘face value or less’ solution.”
Wildlife Entertainment’s Ian McAndrew commented: “The number one grievance I hear from music fans concerns the huge profiteering on ticket resale. We have always made great efforts to keep our artists’ ticket prices within the reach of fans so it is hugely frustrating when a large proportion of tickets immediately end up on Secondary sites, at many times the face value.
“While we adopt various measures to restrict ticket resale and ticket touting we do not wish to prevent genuine fans, who are unable to attend a show, from reselling their tickets at the face value. Twickets provides a safe and fair alternative for those genuine fans who have spares to sell at the face value or less. I am delighted to give my advice and support to this forward thinking service.”
“It is hugely frustrating when tickets end up on secondary siTes. I’m delighted to give my advice and support to twickets.”
Ian McAndrew, Wildlife
Fellow board member and Chairman of Crystal Palace FC ,Steve Parish, also commented: “We’ve all seen the growing frustrations from sports fans who struggle to get along to events because of a lack of ticket availability caused by touting and secondary ticket sites that demand far and above face-value. Twickets represents a refreshing alternative, and I couldn’t be more passionate about supporting them in their mission.”
Twickets is supported by MP Sharon Hodgson, chair of the recent All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Ticket Abuse which lobbied for an amendment to the Consumer Rights Bill, to secure more transparency from secondary ticketing services. The amendment was supported by more than 80 leading representatives of the music, sport and theatre industries including all members of the Twickets board.
Sharon Hodgson, MP, commented: “I am pleased that the Government has recognised the importance of regulation with regard to secondary ticketing, but for me this is really just the beginning, and I see Twickets as the epitome of what the secondary market should ultimately represent. The growing support for Twickets by some of the most important people in the entertainment industry is a huge indication of its relevance. Our joint efforts to stamp out this obscene profiteering on ticketed events, which continues to exploit the hard work and talent of so many, will continue until our goal is achieved.”
[Pictured: Richard Griffiths, Harry Magee, Richard Davies, Steve Parish, Ian McAndrew, Tony Wadsworth]Music Business Worldwide
