Clouds on the horizon

Cloud computing is likely to be the way that many arts organisations go as they attempt to minimise their investment costs while continuing to meet the growing expectations of audiences for efficient customer service at the box office and online. The whole concept of cloud computing, whereby software, data access and storage services are provided from a remote location and delivered as a service, is a tempting one for organisations that are wary of installing, configuring and maintaining their own servers. The idea is to enable arts organisations to get their ticketing and CRM up and running faster, using easy to manage and maintain systems that can adjust flexibly to changes in demand for tickets. ‘Pay as you Go’ is another important benefit of cloud computing for many, particularly any organisation with seasonal peaks and troughs or spikes in demand for certain shows or events, as cloud-based systems are efficient at accommodating this. It can take a venue just a few minutes to scale up its system capacity to manage the point when ticketing opens for anticipated sell-out show, and the system can be scaled down again immediately afterwards, saving on costs.

New to the UK, but tried and tested in southeast Europe and the Middle East, and selling 75% of the tickets in Greece, Tickethour has paired up with Fujitsu to deliver its cloud-based system to the UK. With a built-in Content Management System, and automatic voice-recognition software for both outbound as well as in-bound phone calls, Tickethour is based on the premise that it must be cheaper to provide software as a service than hosting locally. It expects most users will want to use per-ticket fees and pay-as-you-go to minimise costs and reduce up-front payments, and the service starts by offering to re-cycle any redundant hardware with a cashback payment to the venue. Fujitsu’s extra-secure server capacity and bandwidth seamlessly expand and contract to meet traffic levels, coping with busy high demand hours or quieter periods, reducing pay-as-you-go costs whenever possible. Fujitsu are also working with BT on the UK broadband upgrade, and understand broadband speed issues related to ‘the last mile’ (the cable which connects your building): with Tickethour the network activity is optimised for maximum speed.

Another feature of interest to UK venues is likely to be the system’s membership facility. Tickethour has partnered with ScotComms, who are developers of advanced loyalty and membership schemes, and since 1999 have supplied many major sports and teams, as well as the City-pass schemes in tourist cities across the world. They offer an integrated card scheme which handles reward points and lots of tie-ins to High Street and Internet retailers for earning and redeeming points. What’s not to like?