TicketLeap Goes Anywhere With Online DIY Box Office Solution

TicketLeap, the Philadelphia-based provider of Internet ticketing services for event organizers, recently launched a product that turns any Internet-enabled computer with a browser into a functional box-office ticketing system. The new product, dubbed Anywhere, allows organizers of events – big or small – to facilitate the online handling of ticket sales at the venue door or when talking to customers on the phone.

While there are many companies offering online ticketing services to organizers (full disclosure: I’m a partner at Oxynade, which also markets an e-ticketing solution), TicketLeaps claims to be the first one that provides its customers with a way to use their own computers to sell tickets at their events. It does acknowledge however that there may sometimes be extra equipment needed too (think bar-code scanners or printers) and thus offers a way for their customers to rent it directly from them in case they don’t own any.

The cloud-based Anywhere software service includes ticket barcode scanning, the ability for customers to choose their exact seat and support for all sorts of venue customization. TicketLeaps charges a ‘small fee’, although it’s unclear exactly how much, for every ticket that gets sold through the platform and says most organizers opt to simply charge the extra fee to the patron. The company expects most ticketing solutions to follow suit and eventually live in the cloud as well.

“It’s only a matter of time before every ticket you buy comes from web-based ticketing software like this,” TicketLeap CEO Chris Stanchak says. “There’s really no comparison when it comes to cost, convenience and flexibility.”

TicketLeap was started by Stanchak as a recent Wharton graduate back in 2003. In July 2008, the company raised its first round of financing: $2 million from MentorTech Ventures and Ben Franklin Technology Partners.