CLEARLAKE CAPITAL AND SAM SONI ACQUIRE TICKET EVOLUTION THROUGH VICTORYLIVE PLATFORM
Acquisition of end-to-end ticketing software provider enables VictoryLive to enhance its partnerships with event management and ticketing technology providers
ATLANTA, GA and SANTA MONICA, CA – October 12, 2022 – Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. (together with its affiliates, “Clearlake”) and Clearlake operating advisor Sam Soni announced today the acquisition of Ticket Evolution Inc. (“Ticket Evolution” or the “Company”), an end-to-end software provider for the event ticketing industry. The acquisition was completed through Victory Live, Inc. (“VictoryLive”), an event management and ticketing technology platform backed by Clearlake and Mr. Soni, who is a pioneer and leader in the multi-billion-dollar premium ticket and sports hospitality event industry. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Ticket Evolution manages thousands of sports and events tickets on behalf of both professional ticket resellers and rightsholders through an established B2B marketplace with distribution capabilities. The Company’s offerings include both a full-service and an automated SaaS platform providing operational needs to ticket distributors, including ticket fulfillment and delivery. These software solutions are complemented by Ticket Evolution’s pricing intelligence platform, which enables automated price changes in response to market fluctuations or pricing strategies.
The acquisition of Ticket Evolution represents a step in the execution of VictoryLive’s strategy of providing more optionality for rightsholders, resellers, and affiliates by partnering with event management and ticketing technology and data providers. Together with Ticket Evolution, the VictoryLive platform will offer solutions for both rightsholders and professional ticket resellers, with a full technology stack to address a range of customer needs.
“We are excited to add Ticket Evolution to our platform and believe that this acquisition represents an opportunity to accelerate value creation and drive optionality for rightsholders, resellers, and affiliates,” said Mr. Soni, VictoryLive Founder and CEO, who is also the former CEO, Founder, and Chairman of PrimeSport and an industry pioneer responsible for developing a unique event management business model. “Ticket Evolution continues to leverage its technology to drive efficiencies in the ticketing market and is enabling the shift to fully digital and mobile ticketing experiences.”
“Sam’s relationships with rightsholders and resellers combined with Clearlake’s access to capital and sector expertise provide levers to drive accelerated growth at Ticket Evolution,” said Curtis Cheng, CEO of Ticket Evolution. “We believe in the Company and our strategy, and we are excited to bring onboard partners who back that strategy. We are looking forward to investing in product development at the combined platform given the complementary nature of our technology and industry relationships.”
“Our acquisition of Ticket Evolution underscores our fundamental growth strategy for VictoryLive, which looks to expand relationships with and support the growth of event managers by investing in technology and data,” said Behdad Eghbali, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, and James Pade, Partner and Managing Director, of Clearlake. “We are thrilled to leverage our O.P.S.® approach in partnership with Sam, Curtis, and the management team.”
Sidley Austin LLP acted as legal advisor to Clearlake and VictoryLive. Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP acted as legal advisor to Ticket Evolution.
About VictoryLive
VictoryLive is a platform focused on partnering with event management and ticketing technology and data providers. Clearlake launched VictoryLive in November 2021 by partnering with VictoryLive Founder & CEO Sam Soni, who is an established and recognized professional in the sports event management industry and is credited as a pioneer and leader in the multi-billion-dollar premium ticket and sports hospitality event industry. With over 30 years of experience, Mr. Soni was the former CEO, Founder, and Chairman of PrimeSport, a ticketing and event management company formerly backed by Clearlake. He has been at the forefront of innovation, creating many of the current ticketing and packaging models in place for regular season schedules to championship events for the NFL and NCAA. More information is available at www.victorylive.com.
About Ticket Evolution
Ticket Evolution is an end-to-end software platform for the ticketing industry, managing thousands of sports and events tickets on behalf of both professional ticket resellers and rightsholders across several mission-critical solutions. Ticket Evolution’s comprehensive offerings include an established B2B marketplace with distribution capabilities, as well as both a full-service and an automated SaaS platform providing operational needs to ticket distributors, such as fulfillment and delivery. These solutions are complemented by a pricing intelligence platform, which enables automated price changes in response to market changes or pricing strategies. More information is available at www.ticketevolution.com.
About Clearlake
Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. is an investment firm founded in 2006 operating integrated businesses across private equity, credit, and other related strategies. With a sector-focused approach, the firm seeks to partner with management teams by providing patient, long-term capital to businesses that can benefit from Clearlake’s operational improvement approach, O.P.S.® The firm’s core target sectors are technology, industrials, and consumer. Clearlake currently has over $70 billion of assets under management, and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 400 investments. The firm is headquartered in Santa Monica, CA, with affiliates in Dallas, TX, London, UK, and Dublin, Ireland. More information is available at www.clearlake.com and on Twitter @Clearlake.
Media Contacts:
Jennifer Hurson
(Clearlake and VictoryLive)
845.507.0571
