A blockchain startup is coming to Broadway in the hopes of developing deeper relationships with ticket buyers.
True Tickets, a Boston-based startup that launched in 2017, is partnering with the Shubert Organization to launch a pilot program involving Broadway ticketing in mid-2020. The pilot, which came about through the Shubert Organization’s tech accelerator, will see True Tickets integrate its technology into an existing Shubert ticketing framework.
Operating on the IBM Blockchain platform, True Tickets’ technology allows the ticket seller to see every step of the ticketing process, acting as a kind of ledger, from ticket purchase to redemption at the theater.
“The technology, what it does better than anything, is just allows for better management of digital tickets, “ said Matt Zarracina, co-founder and chief executive of True Tickets.
The system, which would only apply to digital tickets, can be used to crack down on scalping, fraudulent tickets or to gain more information about the client purchasing the tickets. In the past, the startup has focused on event ticketing.
Though the Shubert Organization is not sure of its ultimate use for technology, the idea is to gain more knowledge about the customer base, said Kyle Wright, managing principal of the tech accelerator and digital projects director at Shubert Ticketing.
“We’re interested in who is sitting in our seats and developing those relationships,” Wright said.
The True Tickets pilot will either be conducted through Telecharge or another Shubert-affiliated ticketing system.
