The Boston Red Sox Sign a Multi-Year Contract Extension With Tickets.com
Agreement to include ProVenueMobile(TM) ticketing and Primary Ticket Auctions
Tickets.com, a leading global provider of integrated ticketing solutions, announced that it has signed a multi-year contract extension with Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox. With the regular season underway, the seven-time World Series Champions head into 2009 with enhanced ticketing functionality for their fans and their organization. The renewal encompasses Tickets.com products including ProVenueMobile(TM), Tickets@Phone(R), Primary Ticket Auctions, and Automated Kiosks.
“We’re proud of our company’s long association with the Red Sox,” said Larry Witherspoon, chief executive officer, Tickets.com. “I’m pleased that we have the opportunity to serve the club with website mobilization and other upgrades this year. Our goal is to help the franchise score wins in brand differentiation, fanbase expansion, and customer service so that they can concentrate all their efforts on playing a successful season.”
The Red Sox will go live with ProVenueMobile this season, making them the third MLB franchise on the Tickets.com client roster to implement the product after the Oakland A’s and Milwaukee Brewers. ProVenueMobile enables full-circle, branded ticket transactions to be made 24/7 from any mobile phone model directly through the client’s mobilized website. To further maximize the potential of ProVenueMobile, the Boston Red Sox will simultaneously adopt the proprietary Tickets@Phone technology from Tickets.com into its suite of ticketing solutions. Tickets@Phone functionality allows customers to digitally receive unique bar-coded tickets on their mobile phone for a 100% mobile, secure, paperless–and green–ticket buying experience.
Other consumer friendly additions to the Boston Red Sox ticketing service agreement include enhanced functionality through Tickets.com technology via Automated Kiosks and Primary Ticket Auctions for select games. Both features increase the avenues through which patrons can acquire tickets. Automated Kiosks provide a convenient, easy way to get tickets without waiting in long box office lines; Auctions can serve as a fair means to acquire premium seats to key sold-out games. Other MLB teams employing Primary Auctions include the A’s, the Cubs, the Giants and the Tigers.
“Extending our relationship with Tickets.com gives me total confidence that we will be providing state-of-the-art functionality for our fans,” said Mike Dee, chief operating officer, Boston Red Sox. “With technology like ProVenueMobile, game attendees will have more options and ease of use than ever before.”
Source: Tickets.com
Recession Fouls Basketball Superstar – A Player’s Loss is Collectors Gain
There are times when a team transcends the game and steps over the boundaries of the sports pages and into the consciousness of a nation.
It could be argued that the Chicago Bulls during the mid 1990’s was such a team – so well known that even people who never opened an issue of Sports Illustrated could name the starting lineup.
The “repeat the three-peat” wins of the NBA finals of ‘96, ‘97, and ‘98 created a cadre of basketball superstars and characters and set the bar at a new high for the next generation of players. Now a little piece of that victory is up on the auction block. In a testament to the far reach of the recession, former Bulls guard and assistant coach to the Sacramento Kings, Randy Brown, has declared bankruptcy, and his three championship rings will be for sale to the highest bidder via online auction at WestAuction.com.
The Chicago Bulls of the mid ’90s has been considered one of the best teams ever to set foot on a court, and Brown’s role – both as guard and as a team player – was integral. Brown, who made a name for himself in Sacramento as a solid and hard-working assistant coach to the Kings, was well liked by players and fans alike. His focus and ability to help players get the most out of their training was a mainstay during the team’s recent trouble and instability.
Yet these hard financial times have impacted everyone, and Brown is no exception. “It’s a tough situation,” says Dennis West, of West Auctions, the company charged with auctioning the rings. “Randy seems like a really good guy, and he was a great player. However, these are tough times for a lot of people from a variety of backgrounds. People are making difficult financial decisions, and for some that means bankruptcy.” With bankruptcy rates rising rapidly across the nation, you can expect many more auctions in the future.
Brown’s three championship rings are expected to hit the auction block at WestAuction.com on May 19. The bid will start at $19,000 – a bargain in the world of sports collectables.
For more information visit http://www.westauction.com/.
Former TCU Star Robert Henson Drafted by Washington Redskins
Henson Married to Daughter of Bishop T.D. Jakes, Pastor of Dallas-based Church The Potter’s House
Robert Henson, former football standout from Texas Christian University, was drafted by the NFL in the 6th round Sunday by the Washington Redskins. Henson, an outside linebacker for the Horned Frogs and first team Mountain West Conference selection, was excited to be picked by the Redskins.
“It is truly a dream come true,” said Henson who celebrated with his wife Sarah, family and friends at the home of father-in-law Bishop T.D. Jakes. “I’ve dreamed of this moment from the first day that I started playing football, and I can’t believe that this day is finally here.”
Henson, who was honorable mention his first three years at TCU, said the Redskins will teach him all three linebacker positions as well as consider him for special teams play.
Speaking to Redskins personnel, Henson told them, “I’m ready to work.”
Bishop T.D. Jakes was moved not so much by the fact that his son-in-law was drafted, but by the amount of work it took for him to get there.
“Robert has been through so much and worked so hard, I am so proud of him, not just for being a football player, but for being a man,” said Bishop Jakes.
Henson, no stranger to adversity and struggles during his lifetime, became emotional when he recalled conversations he shared with his now deceased brother, Nicholas Sterling, about his chances of playing football at the highest level. “My brother and I would spend hours sitting on our porch talking about me being drafted and playing in the NFL and now this day is here and I am so excited.”
Henson finished his career at TCU with 270 tackles and 4 interceptions. He married Bishop Jakes’ youngest daughter, Sarah, in June of 2008.
“Words cannot express how happy I am for my husband,” said Sarah Jakes-Henson.
Source: The Potter’s House of Dallas