Indian consumers willing to step out for events | Economic Times

MUMBAI: Indian consumers can’t wait to step out for on-ground live entertainment experiences, finds a latest survey by India’s largest ticketing and entertainment platform BookMyShow.As per its Covid consumer survey report 2.0, which focuses exclusively on out-of-home live entertainment, 51% of respondents are eager to get out for live events.Out of these willing consumers, 80% said they will step out within 15-60 days of Unlock 4.0, while remaining consumers have indicated that they would prefer to step out after 60 days.Under the latest guidelines, the central government has allowed events with a cap of 100 people post September 21st.The report is the outcome of a survey of over 2200 respondents, who are active transactors for live entertainment on BookMyShow from across 120 cities and towns in India, out of which 80% are from consumers across Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bengaluru, NCR, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Kochi. 42% of respondents were aged between 25-34 years.As per the survey, East India misses its live events the most, with 52% of respondents from the region eager to catch their favourite concert or show post Unlock 4.0.When it comes to venues, 77% of Indians would prefer an outdoor arena or open air venue over bars or restaurants (27%) or indoor auditoriums (24%).In terms of arrangements, events with seated possibilities, drive-in theatres/concerts and events with predefined markers to stand are the top 3 preferred arrangements for consumers to attend their favourite events.With new SOPs in place for safety and security, consumers said that they would want staff adequately tested and certified to be Covid-negative and voted in favour of seat sanitisation and disinfection tunnels as safety measures. Over 53% of respondents said they are willing to pay more for adequate safety and hygiene measures at live events.Most importantly, consumers want contactless experience with 84% said they will prefer purchasing tickets online and 91% said they will favour the m-ticket or e-ticket option for a complete contactless entertainment experience.BMS, which had launched a dedicated streaming platform for live events, BookMyShow Online, has seen a sharp uptick in virtual ticketed events. “We have come a long way since the start of the lockdown and today, 70% of the virtual events on BookMyShow are ticketed,” said Albert Almeida, COO - Live Entertainment, BookMyShow.He added that the company is already witnessing a strong growth in ticket sales each month as awareness builds and both, the variety and quality of entertainment improves. “As of early August, our ticket sales had grown 7x more than when we started during the initial days of the lockdown with comedy, workshops & masterclasses, music and theatre being our top performing paid categories.”However, Almeida said that there is no comparison to the on-ground live entertainment experience and that consumers are evidently craving to get back to out-of-home entertainment. But, he added that given the prolonged playout of the pandemic. a material return to live entertainment is likely to take a longer period to come back in full force with a staggered recovery in the immediate future.