This acquisition will help SoftBank- and Alibaba-backed Paytm to take on major entertainment ticketing companies such as BookMyShow

Paytm, one of the largest m-commerce and online payments companies in India, has acquired local online ticketing platform TicketNew for US$40 million, as per various media reports.

In June last year, Alibaba Pictures Group, the entertainment arm of Chinese e-commerce honcho Alibaba, had acquired a majority stake TicketNew for US$18.7 million.

This acquisition will help SoftBank– and Alibaba-backed Paytm to take on major entertainment ticketing companies such as BookMyShow, especially in South India.

“Under the TicketNew leadership, Paytm is seeking to connect (their) partner cinemas to more than 300 million customers on Paytm and further invest in helping grow their occupancy and revenues,” said Paytm CFO Madhur Deora said.

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Founded in 2007 by Ramkumar Nammalvar, V Sasi Raman and Ravishankar Ramanujalu, TicketNew claims to be India’s second-largest online ticketing platform after BookMyShow, with presence in over 300 cities. It integrates single-screen theatres, film distributors, production houses and events with users.

‘Box Office’ is the company’s flagship product, which helps cinemas optimise operations. Additionally, it offers mobile apps and customised web solutions to theatres. The company charges a nominal convenience fee from end-users while booking tickets, besides a small fee from theatre owners for software installation and app development.

Listed on both the stock exchanges in Hong Kong and Singapore, Alibaba Pictures has expanded its businesses beyond its home market in the last few years. The firm has an office in Los Angeles in the US and has been looking to expand its footprints in Asia-Pacific regions.

In July 2016, Alibaba Pictures launched a US$300 million investment fund, aimed at building assets across the television and film production chain.

Image Credit: sainaniritu / 123RF Stock Photo

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