Novelty

The fourth value driver in Amit and Zott’s (2001) model is novelty, which according to them includes factors such as new transaction structures, new transactional

content, and new participants. This value driver is linked to the other value drivers, because novelty can be reached by reinventing through the other three drivers. For example, there can be substantial first-mover advantage in a business model, which creates switching costs (Amit & Zott 2001). Some novel approaches can be found from the interviewed organisations, but even more innovative approaches can be identified by looking outside the interviewed organisations.

The interviewed company that focus on providing event feeds has one of the most innovative approaches in exploiting an event database. While other interviewed event feed providers, that mainly focus on their own event calendar, rely mostly on

advertising revenue, this event feed provider has been able to get revenue from event providers. By partnering with multiple media companies and providing event feeds to multiple channels, this event feed provider created a simple marketing tool for event providers with the possibility to buy several different levels of event calendar visibility to different media. Event providers can purchase additional visibility such as showing as top result, highlighted in a listing, and getting a picture in listings to the most relevant media for them. This company has novel approaches to revenue streams, forming partnerships to multiple media companies, exploitation of event database, and making marketing for event providers more efficient.

Another novel way of using event data can be observed from the interviewed

company that help music artists and venues organise music events. The event data is collected automatically from public online sources and used to create a service for artists and venues. This company also plans to use the data to develop tools for event analytics that could be used by, for example, venues and record companies. An interviewed event calendar provider has similar plans to use its event database to create a service for event providers to help them plan events. This is a good and novel example of what Lee (2001) calls demand-side scope effect, where the key question is how to leverage a single asset such as an event database.

One event calendar provider business model, which was not observed from the interviewed organisations, is providing white-label calendars. A white-label calendar provider means that it develops a single event calendar solution to be sold for

business customers. This solution is then tailored to each customer according to their brand and needs. Zvents and Localist are examples of white-label event calendar providers (Zvents 2008; Localist 2011). This business model is viable, because many organisations have a need to publish an event calendar and it consumes significant resources to build an event database and solution. It is almost a standard for every municipality and local paper to have an event calendar in Finland. Additionally, a white-label event calendar provider does not have to build a user base that reaches critical mass to be successful. Switching cost is created through business customer engagement rather than positive network externalities. The revenue stream would also change from mainly advertisement to a combination of services fees of using the while-label solution and a share of customers’ advertising revenue. The role of b-to-b sales would also become a key activity. White-label event calendar provider business model is novel in several ways: it is a complementary way to use an event database, it is a more efficient way to offer an event calendar, and business customer lock-in is created through switching costs.

There are several new types of business models in ticket seller role that are not observed in the interviewed ticket sellers. Eventbrite offers a simple online ticketing solution for event providers only charging a fee from each sold ticket and it is free for free events (Wortham 2011). Therefore it also has characteristics of an event calendar provider. The ticketing solution is bundled with a customisable online event

registration page, social media promotion tools, analytical tool, and payment transfer services (Eventbrite 2011). FanFueled is a slightly different ticket seller service that creates value for fans, event planners, and venues with emphasis on social marketing. Its main innovative point of difference is rewarding fans for recommending events to others and turning fans into promoters (Constine 2011). FanFueled only charges a service fee for each sold ticket and half of the collected service fee is used to reward active fans. It offers several tools for event planners and venues to manage and analyse events. (FanFueled 2011.) Both Eventbrite and FanFueled offer simple and efficient ticketing solution combined with complementary event related services. Additionally, FanFueled creates customer lock-in by engaging consumers in event promotion, which has positive network externalities.

StubHub and Viagogo are both providers of a secondary marketplace for tickets (Bradshaw 2011). Their goal is to connect fans that have tickets to an event that they cannot attend and fans that do not have tickets to a sold out event. The fans that have ticket to sell, for example a season ticket holder who cannot attend every event, can set the price and the service provider take a service charge for each ticket sold. The price can be set above or below the primary market prices. Fans that want to buy tickets can select the best available offer for a specific event. The service can also be used by ticket scalpers even though there is legislation against ticket scalping in some areas. Both StubHub and Viagogo have signed exclusive right contracts to the secondary ticket market with some major event providers (Bradshaw 2011). This is a novel approach to the ticket seller role, because traditional ticket seller companies have ignored the secondary market and the service increases transparency and thus efficiency in the secondary market.

The final ticket seller business model that was not used by the interviewed

companies is while-label ticket solutions such as Ticket ABC (Empson 2011). The logic of a white-label ticket seller is similar to white-label calendar providers. They supply low cost ticketing solutions that are customised to the brand and need of customers (Empson 2011). The target customers are event providers and venues that want to use a low cost solution instead of traditional ticket sellers, which is mainly dominated by large companies.