A New Era For Global Spectrum
Pollstar / Editorial

Thursday, Nov 11, 2004


Comcast-Spectacor has made a minority investment in Paciolan Systems, a technology provider based in Irvine, Calif., which in essence merges their ticketing businesses and gives Global Spectrum-managed buildings more flexibility for in-house ticketing operations.

Comcast-Spectacor's ticket management division, Patron Solutions, becomes New Era Tickets and Global Spectrum Chairman/CEO Peter Luukko gains a seat on Paciolan's board of directors in the deal estimated to be worth "several million" dollars.

Paciolan President/CEO John Hnanicek wouldn't confirm the exact dollar amount of Comcast-Spectacor's investment, but told Pollstar, "It's significant. The message to the industry is that it marks Paciolan's shift from a growth company, being financially venture-backed, to a company that is now backed by a strategic sports and entertainment entity that obviously has a long-term interest in the industry. And it supports our goal of becoming the dominant independent provider to the industry."

Luukko also demurred on the question of his company's investment, but clarified what the deal means to both.

"It's really more of a merger of our ticketing into theirs," Luukko told Pollstar. "From our standpoint, what we bring to the table is that we can help Paciolan become a full-service provider in terms of outlets, phone rooms and so on, so that a facility can decide if it wants to completely control the ticketing from that standpoint or if they'd like to farm some of it out.

"It enables Paciolan to be a very, very flexible company, and that's important. And from our standpoint, we think the technology is outstanding."

The merger also gives Comcast-Spectacor's arena management company, Global Spectrum, more flexibility in its ticketing options - made all the more apparent when the company announced that New Era will take over those operations when contracts with Ticketmaster expire at Philadelphia's Wachovia Center and The Wachovia Spectrum in 2006.

Global Spectrum will seek to sell tickets in-house at many, if not most, of its 41 other venues, though Luukko acknowledged that agreements with municipalities that own many of the buildings means a mass changeover isn't a done deal.

"It really depends on what's good for the venue," Luukko said. "In many of our municipally owned venues there's a bid process. So the company will have to make a bid for the ticketing; it isn't an automatic situation."

It's also not a done deal for Portland, Ore.'s Rose Garden Arena just yet, either. The venue's present management company and a consortium of noteholders recently signed off on a bankruptcy plan for Oregon Arena Corp. that turns over operations to a new group but does not include a transferral of the building's contract with TM, according to venue GM J. Isaac.

However, that doesn't mean the noteholders can't make their own deal with the ticketing giant despite having previously secured Global Spectrum to manage the building beginning January 1st, Luukko explained.

"We're going to be running the arena," he said. "Any of the contracts that are rejected, we're going to be discussing with the noteholders. There haven't been any definite plans yet."

Technology advances have created opportunities for companies like Paciolan to the point that a partnership with Comcast-Spectacor can raise eyebrows and spark talk of challenges to TM. But Luukko downplays that notion.

"Every time we've worked with Ticketmaster, it's always worked well for us, so I can't complain," Luukko said. "Whenever we've asked them for help, they've always been there for us."

On the other hand, Paciolan's Hnanicek is all too happy to point out the advantages of in-house ticketing.

"Typically, a large arena can save several million dollars or earn several million dollars by being able to directly control ticketing and by being able to provide additional value to advertisers and sponsors. They can create entire new revenue streams through advertising and sponsorship," he said.

"We believe the industry is changing. We firmly believe that buildings, artists and promoters can now control their ticketing based on where the technology has come. We clearly have the lead role and the lead product to enable these venues to make that shift.

"We're not taking on Ticketmaster as a distributor. They're a great third-party distributor, but the company is looking to control the enablement and we are the leader there."

Pollstar Magazine is a publication covering the concert industry.

Article originally published in: Pollstar magazine