Ground(ctrl) & Transmission Broke Some Records at Fun Fun Fun Fest

You might have already known that ground(ctrl) has helped Transmission Entertainment the last couple years with web presence, fan engagement and ticketing for Fun Fun Fun Fest, but this year marked a special breakthrough for the company. In addition to managing tons of heavy lifting in the background, the Sacramento-based team also handled ticketing and check-in in a completely new way, using proprietary software called crowd(ctrl) to make festival check-in faster than ever.

Ground(ctrl) is the first company to use iPhones to check in wristbands at festival gates, making the process faster than ever. Despite long lines, fans were checked in at record-breaking rates - as fast as 33 people per minute between the four or five lines for entry. At the box office/will call station, 1,300 people per hour were checked in at peak times -- making the per minute turnover rate around 22 people. Incredible numbers for a small outfit that usually specializes in website design and fan engagement for people like Jane's Addiction and Adam Lambert. They're growing, and Transmission quickly realized how the new software could set standards for festival promotion, engagement and ticketing/check-in. Michael Holz, director of marketing, had this to say about the company's move: "Expanding into event ticketing is a natural progression for us. It follows our overall philosophy of providing fans with continued access to great artists. Partnering with Transmission Entertainment, and Fun Fun Fun Fest has provided us with an incredible opportunity to bolster our offerings. We walked away from F3F 2009 looking to re-invent the ticketing process. For F3F 2010 we launched crowd(ctrl), a top to bottom re-imagining of festival ticketing."

With all the success both ground(ctrl) and Fun Fest enjoyed as partners this year, we imagine we'll see them back in Austin from LA next year for another long weekend of partying with the Transmission Team (and Austinist: we helped organize and staff the media area at the festival). Holz seems inclined to come back and further perfect the software, adding, "It's one thing to come to Austin and take part in SXSW or ACL, these are the events Austin throws for the rest of the country, but Fun Fun Fun Fest is the party Austin throws for itself, and we're privileged to be a part of it."