Paytm says sale of movie and event tickets through it rises six-fold at 52 million in 2017

New Delhi: Paytm on Monday said its users bought over 52 million movie and event tickets through the payments platform in 2017, a six-fold growth over the previous year, as the company continues to aggressively expand its entertainment vertical.

Since launching the category in March 2016, Paytm has partnered with 4,000 movie screens across multiplex operators like PVR, Cinepolis and INOX and several regional chains.

“After an exceptional 2017, we have had a great start in 2018. Our aim this year is to become market leader in the entertainment ticketing category and sell over 100 million tickets across India. We will continue growing the overall ecosystem by adding single-screen cinemas and expanding into smaller cities and towns,” said Madhur Deora, chief financial officer and a senior vice president at Paytm.

In July 2017, Paytm acquired a majority stake in Insider.in, the ticketing arm of events company OML Entertainment. The deal allowed Paytm to showcase events listed on Insider.in on its own platform, giving a major boost to its offerings in the category.

The company claimed it now contributes 25-30% towards the opening weekend box office collection of major movies, and is working closely with production houses for marketing campaigns and analytics.

Paytm has also been pitching for ticketing rights for major events. It was the exclusive ticketing partner for the recent cricket tri-series between India, Sri Lanka and New Zealand and popular music concert Bacardi NH7 Weekender, among others.

“At Paytm, we believe that our ability to reach millions of transacting users will help the organizers to scale rapidly. We look forward to partnering with organizers and taking them to customers across India,” Deora said.