Eventbrite Is Being Acquired. Here’s What It Means for You.
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Vikram, Head of Growth and Co-Owner at SimpleTix, brings a performance marketing background from SeatGeek and early stage startups to SimpleTix’s partnership and growth efforts. A lifelong live event enthusiast, he’s focused on expanding the tools organizers rely on to connect with their audiences.
On December 2, Eventbrite announced it’s being acquired by Bending Spoons for ~$500M, down from a $1.7B peak valuation. The deal takes Eventbrite private and puts it in the hands of a firm known for aggressive cost-cutting and price increases.
If you’re an Eventbrite customer, this is worth paying attention to.
Who is Bending Spoons?
Bending Spoons is a Milan-based tech company that acquires underperforming software brands (Evernote, Vimeo, WeTransfer, Meetup, AOL) and restructures them for profitability. Their playbook is consistent: cut headcount (often 50-75%), raise prices, and streamline operations.
That’s not speculation. It’s their stated model.
What This Likely Means for Eventbrite Customers
Higher fees. Bending Spoons is explicit about monetization being a priority. Eventbrite has already experimented with pricing over the past two years. Expect that to accelerate.
Reduced support. Major headcount reductions typically mean fewer experienced support reps and longer response times, especially during the transition. If you run complex events (reserved seating, multi-day festivals, timed entry), this matters.
Product stagnation. Ownership changes usually mean roadmap resets and internal focus on cost savings. Don’t expect new features anytime soon.
Questions to Ask Yourself
You don’t need to panic. But you should treat this as a prompt to evaluate your options:
What are you paying in total fees today? How sensitive is your margin to a 10-20% increase?
How critical is hands-on support to your events? Can you afford slower response times mid-season?
What’s your contingency plan if pricing or policies change after you’ve already committed to your event calendar?
If any of those questions give you pause, now is the time to explore alternatives, not after new pricing is announced.
Why SimpleTix Is Different
SimpleTix was built for organizers who care about margins, flexibility, and responsive support. A few key differences:
Transparent pricing with a hard fee cap. No subscription fees. Low per-ticket fees that don’t explode on high-value tickets. Special pricing for free events.
Native Square integration. Sell online and in-person with the same payment infrastructure. Reconcile payouts easily. Use Square hardware at the gate. If you already live in Square, SimpleTix is a natural extension.
Support from people who understand events. We’re not trying to be a consumer marketplace. We help you sell tickets under your brand, with fast support and features organizers actually request: reserved seating, timed entry, memberships, flexible fee routing.
Switching Doesn’t Have to Be Painful
A typical migration takes a few days, not weeks. We’ll mirror your ticket types, price levels, and discount codes. Connect Square, Stripe, Paypal or Authorize.net. Test the flow. Go live when it makes sense for your calendar.
The goal is to reduce risk, not create it.
Next Steps
If you’re currently on Eventbrite and want to understand your options, let’s do a quick comparison. Share your typical event volume and we’ll show you exactly what you’d pay on SimpleTix versus what you’re paying now.
Book a 15-minute call with our co-owner, Vikram here.
You’re not locked in to whatever happens next with Eventbrite. You have choices.
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