Chris Tsakalakis
President
StubHub
Twitter: @ctsak
POWER MOVE: Inked deal with AEG that helps legitimize the secondary ticketer.
THE RUNDOWN: Secondary ticket sellers probably get even less respect than the late Rodney Dangerfield. But under the leadership of Chris Tsakalakis, StubHub struck a deal with sports/entertainment powerhouse AEG that will further legitimize his company as the most powerful secondary ticketer in the United States.
The new partnership, announced in November 2012, adds tickets from eBay-owned StubHub to listings on AEG’s AXS ticketing service, beginning in second-quarter 2013. StubHub will also become the office fan-to-fan marketplace for more than 30 AEG facilities. Additionally, the pact integrates global buildings as StubHub expands internationally.
“We see this as an opportunity for us not only to partner with a large player in the entertainment industry, but also to increase the presence that we have with concerts,” Tsakalakis says.
Ticket sales from concerts account for about 25% of StubHub’s business in the United States, with sports leading at 70%. Ticket reselling remains a sensitive subject throughout the music industry, even as concert sales make up StubHub’s fastest-growing division.
“Last year, the value of concert tickets sold on StubHub grew 66% versus the previous year,” Tsakalakis says, adding that the spike was no accident. “We very much focused on increasing our awareness.” He points to StubHub’s Ticket Oak advertising campaign that features an animated tree as the company’s mascot. “We really focused on outlets that would get to ticket buyers.”
StubHub expanded into the United Kingdom in 2011 and plans moving further into Europe later this year. “What’s interesting about the U.K. and most of Europe is that the majority of what we sell there is concert tickets,” he says.