Ticketmaster promotes Mark Yovich to global president

Ticketmaster’s international president, Mark Yovich, has been promoted to president of global business as part of the company’s shift to combine North American and international business operations, according to Billboard.

Elsewhere in the company, Jared Smith is being promoted from president to global chairman and will oversee Ticketmaster’s business across 31 international markets including North America.

While chief operating officer and president Amy Howe will step up into the role of global chief operating officer.

Ticketmaster’s promotions are part of its global expansion which recently saw the company establish a presence in Asia. In February the company launched Ticketmaster Singapore and acquired Taiwanese ticketing platform Tixcraft, bringing the company’s operations to 32 countries worldwide.

“There is tremendous opportunity for continued growth on a global basis”

“By acquiring market leaders Tixcraft in Taiwan and launching in Singapore, we have established two great bases with talented teams to support the bourgeoning live entertainment scene in Asia,” said Yovich, last year.

Last year the company’s international division sold 115 million tickets and sees “tremendous opportunity for continued growth on a global basis, particularly in the 15 markets where we promote concerts but do not yet have a substantial ticketing operation,” according to the company’s 2019 earnings report.

Ticketmaster’s shift comes as parent company, Live Nation, revealed a tough second quarter due to this year’s coronavirus crisis. The entertainment group reported a 98% drop in revenue and US$665m loss but CEO Michael Rapino remains optimistic about the future, predicting the business will return “stronger than ever”.

The loss includes refunds issued by Ticketmaster, which reimbursed money for 11m tickets across 42,000 shows and generated a loss of approximately $79m.

However, Live Nation’s share price has been on a steady incline since the end of June, increasing from $42.64 to its current value of $47.64.

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