最誠信的票務軟件

????設想一下，你正在為周五晚上安排點活動。你仔細研究本地的活動列表，在谷歌（Google）上搜個不停，到處向朋友們打聽，只為了尋找本地眼下最有意思的活動。然而，等你終于找到了，門票很可能已經賣光了。

????因此，不如干脆登錄Applauze。這款集查找活動和購票功能于一身的手機應用程序既簡單又好用。今年三月在iTunes應用程序商店發布的Applauze與餐廳點評網站Yelp以及演唱會信息通知及推薦類應用Bandsintown類似，為36座城市的用戶羅列出當地的各類活動，包括音樂、體育類活動、電影以及免費的社區活動。

????Applauze是現年35歲的基蘭?貝魯比最新的智慧結晶，已經與美國和加拿大的500多家票務經紀公司進行過合作。貝魯比是位于加州山景城的移動應用新創企業955 Dreams的創始人兼首席執行官。955 Dreams已從500 Startups、m8 Capital、Kapor Capital、Felicis Ventures以及CrunchFund等公司籌到了420萬美元的種子資金。Applauze打算向用戶提供“找到活動的最簡單、最棒的方式”。

????和競爭對手不同的是，貝魯比認為Applauze是一款“門票轉售軟件”。955 Dreams本身并不擁有門票一級代理權，它選擇與門票分銷商合作轉售門票。后者的銷售網絡遍布美國和加拿大，很希望找到愿意出高價購買門票的消費者。貝魯比說：“這是完全的市場經濟。我們需要合適的工具去搭建購買者和銷售者之間的橋梁，讓市場的需求和供給最終決定門票價格?！?/p>

????雖然面臨著Ticketmaster、Ticketfly和StubHub等老牌門票銷售軟件的競爭，但Applauze憑借優雅友好的用戶界面脫穎而出。Applauze會在屏幕上顯示熱門活動的標題，用戶只需滑到自己感興趣的活動，輕輕點擊，活動頁面就會展開，顯示出活動描述、路線、花費和其它相關信息。頁面上還出現購票提示；如果是免費活動，會有立即回復的選項；用戶還能通過Facebook邀請好友。Applauze還集成了聊天功能，用戶可以隨時咨詢客服問題。貝魯比解釋道，所有這一切都是為了把Applauze打造成以用戶為中心的購票軟件。貝魯比稱：“大家時間都有限。我們必須尊重使用我們軟件的用戶，不要用垃圾軟件愚弄用戶?！?/p>

????Applauze還承諾不會收取隱藏費用，而這種費用對于別的門票銷售網站很常見。Applauze顯示的門票價格就是用戶最終的購買價（舉例來說，門票手續費通常是票價的3-10%。Applauze的價格直接包含了手續費，而不是在用戶付款時再突然蹦出來。）所以，Applauze上的門票看起來會貴一些，但貝魯比表示，最終售價和其它競爭對手相差無幾。貝魯比承認，消費者需要時間去適應Applauze的定價策略，不過他相信這種誠實的銷售方式最終會贏得客戶芳心。

????Band of the Day的490萬用戶也將成為Applauze發展的一大助力。Band of the Day是955 Dreams公司開發的一款每日尋找樂隊的應用，該應用于2011年在iTunes年度應用的評選中獲得亞軍（僅次于圖片分享應用Instagram）。貝魯比預期，Band of the Day的成功將延續到他在活動和票務市場的新作Applauze中。他說：“我們在許多唱片公司和藝術家中已經頗有名氣，我們是這個社區的一部分。”貝魯比計劃Applauze未來提供后臺通行證以及無需排隊等特殊待遇。（同時，他還計劃繼續強化這款應用的探索和計劃功能。）

????貝魯比期望Applauze成為一個社區平臺，而955 Dreams成為一個生活方式和娛樂品牌。然而，他最大的野心還是在技術本身。貝魯比開發的Applauze完全只針對移動平臺，因為他認為移動平臺對于年輕人互動的方式至關重要，還因為他認為應用開發能改變人們生活的方式?！白鳛檐浖_發專業人士，手機是我們使技術再次充滿人性的大好機會?！保ㄘ敻恢形木W）

????譯者：項航

????Picture yourself trying to make plans for Friday night. You pore over local listings, Google endlessly, and consult friends, all to find the most interesting things happening around town that -- when finally found -- are probably already sold out.

????Enter Applauze, an event-finding and ticket-purchasing mobile app that is as useful as it is easy to use. Similar to Yelp for restaurants, and Bandsintown for concerts, Applauze -- released this past March in the iTunes App Store -- gives users in 36 cities a list of options from across the event spectrum, from music, to sports, theater, and free community events.

????The app, which works with a network of more than 500 ticket brokers in the U.S. and Canada is the latest brainchild of 35 year-old Kiran Bellubbi, the CEO and founder of 955 Dreams, a mobile app startup in Mountain View, Calif., that has raised $4.2 million in seed funding from firms like 500 Startups, m8 Capital, Kapor Capital, Felicis Ventures, and CrunchFund. Applauze sets out to provide customers with "the simplest and most beautiful way to find events."

????Bellubbi considers his new app a "secondary ticket market play," differentiating it from its competitors. Although 955 Dreams doesn't own the primary ticketing rights to events at venues worldwide, the team resells tickets provided to them by brokers with whom they have networked in the U.S. and Canada, scouting for the best deals for their customers. "In a true market place," Bellubbi says, "we need to build adequate tools to facilitate a dialogue between the buyers and sellers and let supply and demand determine what the fair price of the product is."

????However, Applauze's elegant, user-friendly interface is what most separates its service from that of longtime competitors in the ticket industry such as Ticketmaster, Ticketfly, and StubHub. Users simply scroll through a list of event titles, tap, and the tile expands and displays a description, directions to the event, costs, and other pertinent details. There's the option to purchase tickets, RSVP to free events or to invite friends via Facebook. The app also features a built-in chat engine that allows users to talk to customer support in real time. Bellubbi explains this was all part of his vision to make a customer-friendly ticketing app: "People have limited time," Bellubbi says. "They should be respected for using your product -- don't insult them with crappy software."

????The app also promises to protect customers from hidden fees and charges that are common at ticket-booking sites. The price listed is what you actually pay for the ticket (i.e service charges, which result in a 3-10% markup, are included in the ticket price, rather than popping up when it's time to pay.) This means tickets at Applauze appear more expensive than those at competing sites, but according to Bellubbi, they ultimately cost?the same amount. Though Bellubbi acknowledges it will take some time to habituate customers to the pricing strategy, he believes users will appreciate the honest salesmanship in the long run.

????Applauze will also be helped along by the 4.9 million users of Band of the Day, a daily band-finding app developed by 955 Dreams that in 2011 earned runner-up status (behind Instagram) for the iTunes App of the Year. Bellubbi expects that success will carry over to his work in the events and ticketing market: "We've developed a big reputation with a lot of labels and artists," he says. "We're a part of that community." Among his future plans for Applauze is to offer perks like backstage passes and line-skipping privileges. (He also plans to continue to enhance the app's discovery and planning functions.)

????Bellubbi envisions Applauze becoming a community platform and 955 Dreams becoming a lifestyle and entertainment brand. Yet his biggest ambitions relate to the technology itself. Bellubbi developed Applauze to be mobile-only because he saw the platform as central to the way young people interact, but also because he sees app development as a way to transform how people live. "Mobile is our opportunity as software professionals to make technology human again."