Australian ticket marketplace Tixel has raised A$1.5m ($1.2m) in a funding round that includes a number of leading concert businesses and music investors.

Promoters Unified Music Group and I Oh You, labels Rose Avenue and Future Classic and investment firms Alberts and Galileo Ventures are among those who participated in the round, with Alberts CEO David Albert also set to join Tixel’s board of directors.

The funding will be put towards growing the Tixel platform and expand its product suite for event organisers, the Melbourne-based company says.

Launched in 2018, Tixel offers a ‘fair-price’ marketplace (capped at 10% above face value) for fans to buy and sell tickets to events. Most of the company’s inventory is currently in Australia and New Zealand, though it expects growth in the UK and US as in-person events return outside Australasia.

“The entire music and live entertainment industry has suffered beyond measure this last year, and our team is incredibly grateful to have been able to weather the storm,” says Zac Leigh, co-founder and CEO of Tixel. “We’re feeling optimistic about the steep uptick in demand we’re seeing on Tixel from fans wanting to see their favourite musicians, artists, comedians and sports stars.

“Our investment partners … know that a safe and honest place for fans to buy and to resell tickets is a critical need”

“Our investment partners share this optimism and know that a safe and honest place for fans to buy and to resell tickets is a critical need both today, as our plan-making remains fluid, and into the future.”

“At the heart of every investment we make is the goal to back pioneers who share our vision for a better tomorrow,” comments Albert. “A core pillar of our impact thesis is contributing to a vibrant culture. Tixel is a great example of this and sits within our arts, music and entertainment theme. It helps to bring fairness to a market that can attract exorbitant pricing, and safety to transactions that have the potential to be fraudulent.

“Having an independent ethical ticket resale marketplace in Australia can mean more fans at shows, more bar and merch sales for our venues and, importantly, an all-round better experience for everyone involved.”

Other capped-price ticket resale services active in Australia include UK-based Twickets, which launched there in 2017, and Ticketek Marketplace, which allows Ticketek customers to resell unwanted tickets.

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TEG, the parent company of leading Australasian ticket agency Ticketek, has announced the launch of Ticketek Marketplace, a price-capped ticket exchange for Australian consumers.

Ticketek Marketplace, set to go live later this month, will serve as an online portal to resell tickets previously purchased from Ticketek, with a single Ticketek user ID and login applying across both it and Ticketek’s primary platform.

The Ticketek announcement follows the launch of several similar solutions by its European cousins, including See Tickets’ Fan-to-Fan, CTS Eventim’s FanSALE, AXS’s Marketplace and, most recently, Ticketmaster’s upcoming replacement for Get Me In! and Seatwave.

Like FanSALE and AXS Marketplace, Ticketek Marketplace will cap resale prices at a maximum of 10% above face value.

“Many sports and entertainment fans have fallen victim of resale scalping practices based on highly inflated ticket prices, misleading marketing, a lack of transparency and often outright fraud,” says TEG CEO Geoff Jones (pictured).

“The launch of Ticketek Marketplace is another important step in protecting fans and ensuring the integrity of ticket transactions”

“TEG believes that fans want a secondary ticket marketplace they can trust, where the authenticity of tickets is guaranteed and where the prices are fair. Ticketek Marketplace delivers these requirements to fans.

“The launch of Ticketek Marketplace is another important step in protecting fans and ensuring the integrity of ticket transactions.”

According to the International Ticketing Yearbook 2018, Ticketek is, with Ticketmaster Australia, one of the ‘big two’ primary ticketing platforms in Australasia. TEG also owns promoters TEG Live and TEG Dainty, Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney and data firm TEG Analytics.

“We are delighted to offer a service for all events and fans through the launch of Ticketek Marketplace,” comments Ticketek Australia MD Cameron Hoy. “This is a consumer-led, price-capped and ethical ticket exchange service for fans with a genuine need to buy or sell on the secondary market.

“Over several years Ticketek has worked with industry bodies, venue partners, promoters and governments to educate fans about the dangers of resale scalpers. We commend the steps taken by state governments to legislate against these unscrupulous operators.”

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