Ticketmaster wins exclusive ticketing deal at three VENU amphitheaters

Ticketmaster L.L.C. will serve as the exclusive ticketing agent for Venu Holding Corporation (VENU, NYSE American) under a Ticketing Agreement disclosed in an 8-K dated August 3, 2026. The deal covers the company's three amphitheaters in development: Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; McKinney, Texas; and El Paso, Texas. The initial term runs five years from the latest opening date across those venues, then rolls into successive five-year renewals unless either party gives timely written notice to exit.

Exclusivity terms and carve-outs

Under the agreement, Ticketmaster's platform handles all ticket sales up to full admission capacity for each event, with Ticketmaster's system named as the only permitted third-party ticketing channel. The carve-outs are narrow. Venu retains the right to sell tickets at the box office to anyone physically present, to run group sales to parties of at least 15 people, and to issue a reasonable count of House Seats for promoters, performers, managers, fan clubs, and legitimate promotional use. If Ticketmaster fails to offer technology widely adopted by other leading ticket platforms, the company can engage a third party for that specific function only, subject to conditions in the agreement.

Neither party guarantees a minimum or fixed number of ticket sales through the system.

How the fee structure reads

The agreement sets out five distinct charge categories. Venu determines the per-ticket Convenience Charge customers pay at purchase. The company retains that charge up to a specified per-ticket, per-transaction cap, and anything above that threshold is allocated between the parties under terms in the agreement.

A per-ticket Inside Charge, paid by Venu to Ticketmaster, applies to every ticket sold through Ticketmaster's distribution channels and increases by a fixed amount each contract year. Box office sales carry no Inside Charge.

Venu also owes Archtics Transaction Fees for use of Ticketmaster's Archtics platform and Payment Processing Fees calculated as a fixed percentage of gross transaction value. The agreement permits Venu to fold Processing Fees into the Convenience Charge. Software Transaction Fees that Venu collects from season or contract ticketholders can be retained up to the applicable Archtics Transaction Fee amount, with any excess allocated between the parties.

Settlement runs weekly. Ticketmaster collects ticket proceeds and remits Ticket Receipts to Venu, defined in the agreement as face value plus retained fees, less Inside Charges, Processing Fees, and taxes Ticketmaster remits.

What to watch

The opening dates at Broken Arrow, McKinney, and El Paso set the five-year clock and establish the revenue base the fee structure is built around. The 8-K does not disclose those dates or the specific dollar figures tied to Inside Charges, Processing Fees, or Archtics Transaction Fees. Ticketmaster is also required to provide Venu with a one-time Hardware Credit toward certain hardware purchases. The credit amount was not disclosed in the filing.