Ticketmaster global COO Amy Howe to step down
Ticketmaster’s global chief operating officer Amy Howe has announced plans to leave the company next year and has already begun transitioning to a consulting role ahead of her departure.
Howe has served as global COO of the Live Nation-owned ticketing giant since August, when she was promoted from the firm’s president of North America.
She was appointed alongside now-Ticketmaster global chairman Jared Smith and global president Mark Yovich.
Howe has been with Ticketmaster and Live Nation since 2015, when she started as chief strategy officer. She has represented the company in its dealings with the US government and most recently testified before the Senate’s subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on Energy in February.
Howe was appointed alongside now-Ticketmaster global chairman Jared Smith and global president Mark Yovich
Howe will depart after Smith who, in October, announced plans to step down from his role at the company at the end of this year, when Yovich will take over his position.
Smith, who has been with Ticketmaster for more than 17 years and previously served as the company’s president of North America, and COO, said his departure will help Ticketmaster to bring in new leadership for the post-Covid-19 era.
“The company deserves to have the person who’s going to be here long-term making the decisions right now of what it should look like,” Smith told Sportico.
Ticketmaster has seen a number of staffing changes in 2020. In late October, the company announced that Marla Ostroff had been promoted to managing director, Ticketmaster, North America; Trevor Allin had been promoted to EVP, business and commercial operations, North America; and Maura Gibson joined in a new role as EVP, client solutions and strategy, North America.
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Appointments and exits across the US live sector
Jared Smith, global chairman of Live Nation’s Ticketmaster, announced that he is planning to step down from his role at the company at the end of this year.
According to Sportico, which first reported the departure, Smith said his exit will help Ticketmaster to bring in new leadership for the post-Covid-19 era.
“The company deserves to have the person who’s going to be here long-term making the decisions right now of what it should look like,” Smith told Sportico.
Smith, who has been with Ticketmaster for more than 17 years, was appointed to his current role earlier this year. He has previously served as the company’s president of North America, and COO.
Elsewhere, former UTA agent Anthony Paolercio has been appointed as a partner at Patchwork Presents, a talent buying, event promotion and consulting company.
“Anthony and I cut our teeth together at The Agency Group over 15 years ago and I’m very excited to have him join Patchwork and our mission of supporting artists and bringing high-quality entertainment to independent venues nationwide,” says Patchwork president Dave Poe.
“The company deserves to have the person who’s going to be here long-term making the decisions now of what it should look like”
Paolercio adds: “I consider Dave Poe my closest friend and colleague in the business. I trust him completely, which is the most important part of building a strong and enduring partnership. There aren’t many agents turned promoters in our business, so I feel that I have a unique perspective to offer.”
During his time at UTA, Paolercio specialised in festivals for its roster of clients, working with artists including Guns N’ Roses and Post Malone.
Superfly, a live entertainment and brand experience company which founded US festivals Bonnaroo and Outside Lands, has also made a new appointment.
Former Momentum Worldwide executive Richard Black is stepping into the role of president and general manager of Superfly’s agency business, effective immediately.
The newly created role will involve Black building clients’ brands and their businesses. Black will be based at Superfly’s New York headquarters and will report to co-founder Rich Goodstone.
“Superfly was born experiential,” says Black. “We build communities and fandoms around brands through thought-provoking and cutting edge ideas that drive business results. I’m honoured to join this talented team during these transformative times and am looking forward to shaping the future and redefinition of experiential.”
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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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