viagogo CEO Wins Technology Award
This week, Eric Baker, CEO of viagogo (www.viagogo.co.uk), Europe's leading online secondary ticket exchange, won the Technology CEO of the Year prize at the 2008 UK Technology Innovation and Growth Awards.
(PRWEB) March 21, 2008 -- This week, Eric Baker, CEO of viagogo (www.viagogo.co.uk), Europe's leading online secondary ticket exchange, won the Technology CEO of the Year prize at the 2008 UK Technology Innovation and Growth Awards.
Eric Baker was also nominated as a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year at the ceremony in central London on Tuesday 18 March. The awards, now in their ninth year, recognise those individuals and organisations that drive the success of the UK's fastest growing technology companies.
The judging panel recognised Eric's exceptional leadership of viagogo and efforts in helping to legitimise the secondary ticketing marketplace and noted, "By applying his expertise in the ticketing industry, viagogo has helped bring consumers the benefits of a safer, more secure way of buying tickets. Through the application of viagogo's technology, Eric has addressed a real world problem and made the lives of music lovers and football fans considerably more pleasant to boot. What is more, he has forged major contracts with some of the world's strongest brands, a key ambition for a CEO in any sector."
This is the latest in a line of successes for viagogo since it launched in August 2006. The company has pioneered secondary ticketing in Europe and is now the leading force in the multi-billion pound industry. It provides a safe, secure exchange that allows people to buy and sell live event tickets in a safe and 100% guaranteed way.
Eric Baker welcomed the accolade. Speaking after the awards, he said, "It's a real honour to receive this award. viagogo has only been trading for 18 months but we've come a long way in a short space of time. We feel like we have an innovative and exciting business model and this award recognises the great strides the whole team has made so far."
Since its launch, Eric has developed a portfolio of partnership deals with world class UK and European sports teams, music and media companies and charities. viagogo is the official secondary ticketing partner of football clubs such as Chelsea FC, Manchester United FC, Everton FC, Portsmouth FC and FC Bayern Munich, as well as Rugby Union clubs Leicester Tigers and London Wasps.
Eric has also signed partnerships with lastminute.com, Europe's leading independent online travel and leisure group, major music companies Warner Music International and Live Nation Holland and charities Amnesty International and Music for Relief. Consequently viagogo has become the online destination of choice for people seeking tickets for major live events of all kinds across Europe.
For more information about viagogo please contact
Melissa Varcoe at freud communications
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3003 6428; Email: melissa.varcoe @ freud.com
Notes for editors
About UK Technology Growth and Innovation Awards
The UK Technology Innovation and Growth 2008 Awards recognise those individuals and organisations that drive the success of the UK's fastest growing technology companies. Award nominations go through an exhaustive process of investigation by the esteemed panel of judges and over the last nine years these awards have become one of the most coveted accolades within the industry.
http://www.innovationandgrowthforum.com/awards/about/
About viagogo
viagogo is an online secondary ticket exchange that allows people to buy and sell live event tickets in a safe and secure environment. What that means is that viagogo facilitates and guarantees the exchange between someone who wants to sell and someone who wants to buy live event tickets. By managing payment and delivery we guarantee that buyers will receive their tickets and sellers will receive payment. For this service, viagogo takes a commission which is a percentage of each exchange.
viagogo was set up in August 2006 by the co-founder of StubHub.com, the leading online secondary ticketing company in the US that was acquired in March 2007 by eBay for $307m. Based on an already proven business model and adapted for the European market, viagogo is the first and leading business of its kind in Europe, bringing efficiency and transparency to what has traditionally been a murky marketplace. It is therefore the best place to buy and sell live event tickets in a secure and guaranteed way.
Since it launched, viagogo has developed a portfolio of partnership deals with world-leading UK and European sports teams, media companies and charities. It is the official secondary ticketing partner of football clubs Chelsea FC, Manchester United FC, Everton FC, Portsmouth FC, Heart of Midlothian FC and FC Bayern Munich, as well as Rugby Union clubs Leicester Tigers and London Wasps. Among other deals, viagogo has also signed partnerships with Blackburn Rovers FC, lastminute.com, Europe's leading independent online travel and leisure group, major global music company Warner Music International, concert promoter Live Nation and charities Amnesty International, Music for Relief and Leonard Cheshire. viagogo is the online destination of choice for people seeking tickets for major live events of all kinds across Europe.
In August 2007, viagogo launched operations in the U.S. with an exclusive partnership with the NFL's Cleveland Browns. For more information, visit www.viagogo.com
viagogo was announced as the winner of the E-Commerce category at the 2007 International Business Awards and was also nominated as a finalist in the best new company and the best new media and entertainment service categories.
The company was also the runner-up in the best new business category at the 2007 New Media Age Effectiveness awards, and runner up in the best e-company category at the 2007 Sharp Edge business awards.
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