American Idols Live Claims Top Spot on TicketsNow's May Entertainment Index, Ending Wicked's Reign at #1

American Idols Live Claims Top Spot on TicketsNow's May Entertainment Index, Ending Wicked's Reign at #1

Baseball Sweeps Sports Category Once Again

CHICAGO, June 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Wicked was finally dethroned in May from its number one spot on TicketsNow's index of best selling events. The American Idols Live tour, with 6.30% of overall sales, was the top seller on TicketsNow. The tour is shaping up to be the biggest concert series of the summer, leading the concert category with 17.05% of sales.

"With American Idol winner Taylor Hicks and runner-up Kathrine McPhee bringing their substantial fan bases, it is not a surprise that the concert series is an instant success," says Kenneth Dotson, Chief Marketing Officer for TicketsNow. "This show appeals to a wide variety of our customers."

Wicked didn't fall far; it dominated the theater category with 36.72% of sales and maintaining the number two spot overall, with 5.85%. Monty Python's Spamalot also had a strong showing this month coming in at number two in the theater category with 10.17% of sales.

As the summer heats up, the drama of baseball season continues to build. Baseball teams occupy five of the top ten spots overall in the TicketsNow May Entertainment Index. The New York Yankees climbed to the number three spot overall, with 4.28% of sales and claimed the number one spot in the sports category from long time rival the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox dropped to the number two spot in sports in May and to fourth in overall sales.

The battle between pop and country still continues to be a close one in the concert category. Tim McGraw edged out Madonna in May in the concert category behind the American Idols Live Tour. McGraw notched 7.87% of concert sales while Madonna came in third at 5.47%. The rest of the top 10 concert artists include Kenny Chesney, Shakira, Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Dave Mathews Band, Jimmy Buffett, and Roger Waters.

Following are the category leaders for May:

Top May Events Overall

1. American Idols Live 6. Tim McGraw
2. Wicked 7. St. Louis Cardinals
3. New York Yankees 8. Chicago White Sox
4. Boston Red Sox 9. Madonna
5. Chicago Cubs 10. Phoenix Suns

Top May Sports Ticket Sales

1. New York Yankees
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Chicago Cubs
4. St. Louis Cardinals
5. Chicago White Sox

Top May Concert Ticket Sales

1. American Idols Live
2. Tim McGraw
3. Madonna
4. Kenny Chesney
5. Shakira

Top May Theater Sales

1. Wicked
2. Monty Python Spamalot
3. Jersey Boys
4. The Lion King
5. Cirque Du Soleil: Corteo

About the TicketsNow Entertainment Index

The TicketsNow Entertainment Index tracks proprietary secondary ticket sales on a monthly basis to provide a snapshot of entertainment trends for sports, music, and theater events nationwide.

About TicketsNow

Established in 1999, TicketsNow is the world's largest and most trusted marketplace for premium event tickets. More than 90% of all professional ticket agencies that list, buy, and sell secondary event tickets online utilize software developed by TicketsNow-creating the most comprehensive database of secondary event tickets in the world. Named to the Inc. 500 index of the fastest-growing privately held companies in the U.S., TicketsNow is a premium ticket provider for USA TODAY and AOL, a member of the Better Business Bureau, and a founding member of the NATB, which promotes the highest level of ethics in the secondary ticketing marketplace. For more information, visit www.TicketsNow.com

Contact:
Sarah Schorno
Alan Taylor Communications for TicketsNow
212.714.1280 x249
sarahs@alantaylor.com

Jennifer Swanson
TicketsNow
815.444.4923
jswanson@TicketsNow.com

Source: TicketsNow

CONTACT: Sarah Schorno of Alan Taylor Communications for TicketsNow,
+1-212-714-1280 x249, or sarahs@alantaylor.com ; or Jennifer Swanson of
TicketsNow, +1-815-444-4923, or jswanson@TicketsNow.com

Web site: http://www.ticketsnow.com/

-------
Profile: intent