What Seated does

Seated operates a two-sided fan-first ticketing platform that connects music fans with early access to live event tickets from their favorite artists. On the fan side, users create a "True Fan" profile by following artists; when a followed artist announces a show nearby, Seated sends an SMS notification granting early ticket access, with digital tickets delivered directly to the fan's phone without requiring app installation. On the artist side, Seated provides a custom tour listings widget (deployable via one line of code or API) for publishing tour dates on artist websites, a follower notification system to grow audience engagement, and merchandise add-ons that let artists bundle physical merchandise, digital music, or charity donations into the ticket purchase flow.

Underlying technology is a lightweight fan-following notification engine with location-based matching and direct-to-phone SMS delivery. The platform exposes an API for custom artist integrations and emphasizes a privacy-first posture (no data resale). Seated's stated differentiators include lottery/lottery-based allocation to combat scalping, and direct artist-to-fan relationships that bypass incumbent ticketing intermediaries.

Seated's revenue model is transaction-based: it takes a commission on ticket sales facilitated through the platform and earns a revenue share on merchandise and add-on purchases bundled into the ticket flow. The company monetizes both sides — fans via ticket facilitation and artists via add-on revenue capture — while ticket prices themselves are set by individual artists. The company is privately held, headquartered in New York, operates with 1-10 employees, and has raised approximately $1.16M in disclosed funding across three rounds (2018-2020) led or participated in by Techstars, Right Side Capital Management, and Early Light Ventures.

Name

Seated

Website

https://seated.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Seated is a two-sided ticketing platform that gives music fans early SMS-based access to tickets from followed artists and provides artists with tour listing widgets, fan insights, and merchandise add-on revenue capture, monetizing via per-transaction commissions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Event Ticketing Marketplace

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Ticketing Platforms & Primary Ticketing (MPAIAFAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Secondary Ticket Marketplaces (Resale/Exchange) (MPAGAJAB), Scheduled Live Audio Events & Ticketed Rooms (MPACAEAB)

Keywords

• Live event ticketing
• Fan presale access
• Artist tour listings
• Digital ticket delivery
• Concert merchandise add-ons

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales Commission: Platform facilitates ticket sales between artists and fans, taking a commission on transactions
2. Merchandise Add-ons: Artists can offer physical merchandise, digital music, or charity donations during the ticket purchase flow, generating additional revenue share

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Seated is a two-sided live event ticketing marketplace that connects fans with their favorite artists through a True Fan profile system. Fans sign up, follow artists, and receive SMS notifications granting early/presale access to nearby show tickets, with digital tickets delivered directly to their phones without requiring an app installation. On the artist side, Seated provides tour listing widgets (embeddable with one line of code or via API) and a merchandise/charity add-on feature that lets artists generate additional revenue during the ticket purchase flow.

Product overview

Seated operates as a two-sided ticketing platform connecting artists with fans. The fan-facing offering includes a True Fan Profile system for following artists and receiving early access notifications, paired with a Digital Ticket Delivery system that sends tickets directly to mobile devices without requiring app installation. The artist-facing offering provides Custom Tour Listings (installed via code or API), Fan Follower Notifications for growing audience engagement, and Merchandise Add-ons enabling physical merchandise, digital music, and charity donations within the purchase flow.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Seated for Fans Fan-facing live event ticketing access service. Music fans create a True Fan profile, follow their favorite artists, and receive SMS notifications when those artists announce shows in their area. Seated partners directly with artists to give fans early/presale access to tickets, with digital tickets sent directly to the fan's phone without an app installation. Targets individual concert-goers seeking guaranteed access and protection from bots and scalpers.
• Seated for Artists Artist-facing platform offering custom tour listings for artist websites (installed via one simple line of code or via Seated's API for custom builds), fan follower growth with automatic show alerts to fans, and merchandise/digital music/charity donation add-ons embedded in the purchase flow. Provides artists with first-party fan insights and an additional revenue stream per ticket. Used by what Seated describes as thousands of artists ranging from independent acts to major touring names.

Named customers15 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bandsintown: Bandsintown is an artist-to-fan concert discovery and notification platform that lets fans follow artists and receive alerts when they announce nearby shows. It overlaps directly with Seated's True Fan follow-and-notify model on the demand-generation side of ticketing.
• DICE: DICE is a fan-first primary ticketing platform focused on live music events, with an emphasis on fair-access ticketing (lottery/queue-based sales) to combat scalpers. It is the closest direct analogue to Seated in terms of artist-side partnerships, fan-side mobile-first delivery, and anti-bot positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Eventbrite: Eventbrite is a self-service ticketing and event-management platform serving concerts, festivals, and small-to-mid-sized live events. While it lacks Seated's artist-direct fan-first angle, it competes for the same ticketing transactions at smaller venues and artist-managed shows.
• AXS: AXS is a primary ticketing platform owned by AEG, integrated with venue operations at AEG-owned and partner arenas. It competes with Seated for direct-to-fan artist relationships and primary-ticket transactions, especially in the live music segment.
• Ticketmaster (Live Nation): Ticketmaster is the dominant primary ticketing platform in the US, with exclusive contracts at most major venues and direct integrations into Live Nation's promotion and venue businesses. It is the primary competitive incumbent Seated is positioning against, particularly via its anti-scalper and direct-access messaging.

Emerging players

• Lyte: Lyte is an emerging ticketing platform focused on fan-friendly exchange and reservation features for live events. It overlaps with Seated in providing artist-friendly ticketing infrastructure and consumer-protection features against bots and scalpers.
• StubHub: StubHub is a large secondary ticketing marketplace. While Seated targets primary ticketing, both compete for consumer mindshare around live-event ticket access and against the same bot/scalper problem.
• Front Gate Tickets: Front Gate Tickets is a primary ticketing platform specializing in festivals and live music tours, with a focus on artist- and promoter-friendly ticketing. It is comparable to Seated in serving the artist-and-promoter side of live music ticketing.
• Tixel: Tixel is a fan-to-fan ticket exchange and primary ticketing platform with strict anti-scalping rules and verified-resale features. It overlaps with Seated on the consumer-protection and fair-access positioning even though its primary marketplace is secondary.
• Resident Advisor: Resident Advisor is a leading platform for electronic music events, combining listings, ticketing, and editorial coverage. It is comparable to Seated as a music-specific ticketing destination serving engaged fans, though it is vertical-focused on electronic music.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/seated
• Instagraminstagram.com/seated

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Seated