Pointstreak, which runs electronic raffles at sports facilities, has formed a partnership with point-of-sale vendor Appetize to sell 50/50 tickets through mobile devices.
Toronto-based Pointstreak has deals with more than 250 teams and venues in North America, including nine NFL clubs. Pointstreak sells raffle tickets on behalf of its clients at sports events, and the winning ticket holder in the crowd splits the money equally with a charity.
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| Prototype app listings show Pointstreak raffle tickets selling alongside merchandise. |
Los Angeles-based Appetize supplies mobile payment systems to Madison Square Garden, Lincoln Financial Field and Wells Fargo Center, among its 54 sports and entertainment properties.
No money changed hands in the agreement between Pointstreak and Appetize. Pointstreak is absorbing the investment to develop the shared technology with Appetize without passing those costs along to potential clients, said Scott Secord, Pointstreak’s president and CEO.
“In the business we’re in, the more sales we can generate, the better it is for us, and it’s the same with Appetize,” he said.
Together, their initial focus is pursuing a shared integration with the dozen clients with whom they both have agreements, including the Philadelphia Eagles, Flyers and Sixers, all of whom use Pointstreak to sell raffle tickets at their venues.
In other cases, Appetize could embed the raffle ticket piece in its apps and give clients the option to activate that feature, effectively bypassing the need for a separate agreement, Secord said.
To date, the Pointstreak-Appetize alliance has not approached teams about incorporating their shared technology, officials from both firms said.
“We have our own branded app as well as a white-label solution for teams,” said Kevin Anderson, Appetize’s co-founder and director of business development. “At the Garden, for example, fans can download the Knicks and Rangers apps and select e-shop to order food and merchandise.”
For Pointstreak, the partnership takes its raffle process one step beyond raffle ticket sellers roaming the building and self-serve kiosks. Fans would now be able to push a tab on their mobile devices to buy raffle tickets at the same time they buy concessions, all for delivery to their seats.
Veteran sports executive Peter Luukko sits on the advisory boards of both Pointstreak and Appetize, and he brought the two companies together after he saw an opportunity for selling raffle tickets through smartphones and tablets.
“This technology offers another product to be sold on the apps and our long-term goal, as Appetize continues to develop its point-of-sale business, is to sell raffle tickets at concessions stands,” said Luukko, who also serves as Pointstreak’s executive chairman and has an equity stake in the company.
Pointstreak officials believe they can help teams generate additional 50/50 revenue tied to charities by making it even more convenient for fans to buy raffle tickets, Luukko said.
The principals for both companies see opportunity for growth outside of sports in the music festival market by signing deals with major event promoters such as Live Nation and AEG Live, Luukko said.
Appetize got its start in the concert business and has deals with Bonnaroo, Music Midtown in Atlanta and the Voodoo Music & Arts Experience in New Orleans. At Bonnaroo, a festival drawing 80,000 in rural Tennessee, Appetize sets up its mobile point-of-sales systems at 250 food stands, Anderson said.
