AXS rolls out mobile streaming app

(Top) Screen view of AXS streaming content from New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, (left) a look at the AXS mobile app

AEG announced that its AXS ticketing and entertainment platform will now include a news resource, which will provide fans with informative and behind-the-scenes entertainment content. Articles will include information on local and national concerts, festivals, sporting events and family shows.

AXS, which acquired Examiner.com last January, will utilize the site’s existing writer base in combination with local and national writers, photographers and videographers.

The new platform was launched this past Monday in conjunction with AXS’ coverage and livestreaming of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell. The premier site provides fans information on the event, including what to pack for the show, interviews with the bands and things to do in New Orleans. It also will provide overviews of artists and performers online.

“We’re going to focus a lot around the content of the live event industry,” said Tom Andrus, AXS digital senior vice president and general manager. “This is live entertainment content, not a focus on celebrities or gossip, but about encouraging people to go out more, educating people about going to shows, making it easier to attend shows and providing tools to make the entire experience of attending live events that much better.”

The news platform also will offer brands and advertisers a vehicle to build campaigns targeting readers, viewers and ticket buyers.

“One of the things we found is the primary reason people don’t go to shows is that they don’t know about them,” said Andrus. “[With our AXS platform,] we want to compete against the couch and attract people who don’t go to shows.”

This is the latest phase of AEG’s AXS platform. Launched in August 2011, AXS Ticketing, was created in conjunction with Outbox Enterprises, with AEG serving as an equity partner and client.

The program’s technology enables tickets to be sold under both the AXS as well as local venue brands. With this white label platform, AXS can form distribution partnerships in local markets, which allows venues to control where, when, how and at what cost to sell their tickets.

The service is available to ticket buyers at AXS.com as well as on all mobile platforms with an integration to Facebook and Twitter.

The AXS app, which rolled out last October, is now in 48 venues. It serves the ticketing function of searching for events, buying tickets and redeeming digital tickets as well as providing live streaming of some events.

Users were able to access the app to see select performances at New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, including Santana, Vampire Weekend, Galactic, Anders Osborne, Jason Isbell, The Mavericks and Bonerama. The free live mobile performances were made available in the App Store on iTunes or on Google Play.

The Jazz Fest is AXS app’s third live stream. The live stream feature debuted last January with Music for Relief’s Concert for the Philippines and then in conjunction with the Bud Light Hotel performance during the Super Bowl, which live streamed performances by Imagine Dragons and the Zac Brown Band on a cruise ship.

In addition to providing live streaming capabilities, the AXS app allows users to search for shows in the area, at a certain venue, by genre or by artist. The platform can be used to purchase tickets, share tickets electronically and enter a venue with a mobile ticket. The app also can be used to compile photos from an event and create an album to share on social media or via e-mail.

“The goal is to create more of the full customer experience around discovering shows and reliving shows,” Andrus said. “We want to help build a world of engaged fans.”

Interviewed for this article:  Tom Andrus, (310) 854-8189