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Vivint Arena shifts ticketing vendors, opting for national firm Ticketmaster

Move ends arena’s association with Utah-based Smith’s Tix.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Jazz recently unveiled renovations for the arena.

  | Oct. 16, 2017, 6:54 p.m.

When Utah Jazz fans and Salt Lake City concertgoers buy their tickets to the Vivint Smart Home Arena, they will be going through a different vendor.

This month, the national ticketing company Ticketmaster becomes the vendor for all events at The Viv, taking over from the Utah-based Smith’s Tix. The switchover happened Oct. 2, but regular customers received emails Monday morning filling them in on how to switch over their accounts.

The move covers all Utah Jazz games, as well as such concerts as Monday’s appearance by Janet Jackson, and upcoming performances by the Harlem Globetrotters (Nov. 4), Christian rock band Skillet (Nov. 5), Disney on Ice (Nov. 16-19), the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (Nov. 21), pop star Katy Perry (Nov. 24), and pop legend Billy Joel (Nov. 29).

The change also covers Smith’s Ballpark, where the Salt Lake Bees minor-league baseball team plays.

The move will let fans transfer and sell verified tickets on Ticketmaster’s website and mobile app, and connect to the Jazz’s new mobile app. Chris Barney, vice president of ticketing for Larry H. Miller Sports & Entertainment, said the Jazz’s new app will “make it very seamless and easy to buy tickets,” providing interactive seating charts and other features.

Convenience fees for single tickets — like those sold on Ticketmaster’s resale market by season-ticket holders — are roughly comparable to the fees under Smith’s Tix, Barney said. Those work out to approximately 20 percent of the ticket’s face value.

Jazz staff and Ticketmaster have worked through a few bumps in the first weeks, Barney said. “No matter what you do, in the short term, new is difficult for some people,” he said.

People holding paper tickets issued by Smith’s Tix can still use them, the Vivint Arena’s email told customers. The arena will no longer use Flash Seats, Smith’s Tix’ secondary ticket service, and tickets now on that service have bee transferred to customers’ new Vivint Arena accounts.

Deirdre Hill, general manager of Smith’s Tix, said losing The Viv won’t harm their business much. Hill said that over the last 20 years, Smith’s Tix has had the arena (whether it was called the Delta Center, EnergySolutions Arena or now Vivint Smart Home Arena) as a client for only seven of them.

Smith’s Tix continues to handle ticketing for the Maverik Center, USANA Amphitheater, The Depot and several other Utah venues, Hill noted. “We’re not going anywhere,” she said.