Mumbai : Big Tree Entertainment, which owns BookMyShow, is looking to expand beyond online movie and events ticketing, offering videos and information on actors and films along with “some snappy content”. It plans to also provide a ticketing platform that organisers of small events can use for a fee.
“We will now look to grow horizontally. We are just present in the ticket-buying experience in the entertainment life cycle, but there is a discovery side where we can be more relevant to consumers as well,” said Rajesh Balpande, co-founder of Mumbai-based Big Tree. It will look at hiring and acquisitions as it moves into these new segments, Balpande said.
The expansion comes after BookMyShow has built a dominant market share in the online entertainment-ticketing space.The company claims around 15 million users, with 60 per cent of its traffic and nearly half the transactions coming from mobile internet. It raised Rs 150 crore in June this year, valuing the company at more than Rs 1,000 crore. Investors in the company, include SAIF Partners, Accel Partners and Network18 Media, which is now owned by Reliance Industries.
For expansion into content, BookMyShow will initially introduce the content service on its website which could be spun out later. It is planning to also launch a recommendation engine based on user history, like an exhibition or event near the movie hall a consumer frequents.
Market experts believe that this will increase engagement with its existing user base. “The larger theme for mobile first marketplaces is that they are evolving into content, community and commerce integrated plays. BookMyShow has a great commerce leg, they are adding both content and community to create a platform that has higher discovery and stickiness of users,” said Vikram Vaidyanathan, managing director at venture-capital firm Matrix Partners India.
The do-it-yourself ticketing platform, for events like New Year parties, is a key part of the expansion plan. “We can provide these services for smaller events where organisers don’t need managed services but can set ticketing, invites and gate entries on their own,” said Balpande. The company plans to charge a 5-7% convenience fees on this service. It is similar to US-based Eventbrite, which was valued over $1 billion earlier this year.
