London’s Dice Raises $122M at $400M Valuation

The Rise of Dice: A $400 Million Valuation in the Evolving Live Events Landscape

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted the live events sector over the past 18 months. However, it also highlighted innovative startups capable of adapting and thriving during this challenging period. Dice, a London-based company specializing in live event discovery and ticketing, has recently secured $122 million in funding, bringing the company’s valuation to $400 million.

Funding Details and Key Investors

This Series C funding round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2. Notable participants include Tony Fadell, the “father” of the iPod and Nest co-founder, via Future Shape, alongside Blisce, Xavier Niel, Mirabaud, Cassius, and Evolution – all of whom had previously invested in the company. Early investors also encompassed the DeepMind co-founders, Mustafa Suleyman and Demis Hassabis, reflecting Dice’s initial focus on data science and algorithmic recommendations.

Prior to this latest round, Dice had reportedly raised approximately $45 million, according to PitchBook estimates.

From Livestreaming to a Multimodal Strategy

Dice initially concentrated on live music events. During the height of pandemic lockdowns, the company strategically shifted its focus to livestreaming. Having hosted over 6,400 livestreamed events and numerous in-person gatherings, Dice is now adopting a multimodal approach. This expansion aims to cater to a broader audience by offering options for discovering and purchasing tickets for both streamed and physical events.

Geographic Expansion and Market Growth

The newly acquired funds will primarily be allocated to expanding Dice’s geographic reach, with a particular emphasis on the United States. The U.S. market currently demonstrates the fastest growth for Dice, as cities and consumers resume social activities. In August alone, over 1 million people in New York City utilized Dice to find and attend events.

Ustwo's Role and Evolution

Dice was co-founded in 2014 by Phil Hutcheon in collaboration with Ustwo, the agency behind the game Monument Valley. It has been confirmed that Ustwo, which had not been actively involved in Dice’s operations for several years, has sold its shares in the company as part of this funding round.

Challenging the Dominance of Existing Ticketing Platforms

Established players like Ticketmaster, Live Nation, StubHub, and Eventbrite currently dominate the event ticketing market. However, Dice CEO and co-founder Phil Hutcheon argues that these legacy platforms are outdated and ill-suited to contemporary demands.

These platforms are often costly for both event organizers and attendees, and have been slow to address issues like ticket scalping and counterfeiting. Furthermore, they haven’t fully leveraged the potential of data analytics to provide valuable insights to event organizers.

Transparency as a Core Principle

“The world has been opaque around live performance, but it’s now 2021,” Hutcheon stated. “The solution to change this is transparency. [Legacy ticket companies] make everything unnecessarily complex.”

Dice’s Three-Pronged Approach

Dice’s strategy centers around three key areas, according to Hutcheon:

• Easy and Secure Ticketing: Providing a streamlined and secure ticketing experience for both users and venues.
• Enhanced Discovery: Offering reliable recommendations for events based on user interests and location.
• Community Building: Fostering a sense of community among event attendees, both online and offline.

The company originally focused on connecting like-minded individuals on the platform, and is now broadening its community initiatives.

Addressing Loneliness and the Desire for Connection

Hutcheon noted that loneliness has become a significant issue, particularly among young adults. “Getting out to experience culture brings people together,” he said, highlighting the social benefits of attending live events.

A Tech-Driven Approach to Event Management

Dice has adopted a technology-focused approach to address these challenges. The company has built a network of over 3,600 venues and promoters, working closely with them on ticketing. It has also developed a proprietary dataset based on user behavior, which is used to personalize event recommendations.

The platform utilizes digital, mobile-based ticketing to prevent reselling and counterfeiting, and offers a legal resale option with venue-controlled refunds. Furthermore, it provides venues, artists, and promoters with detailed analytics to optimize event planning and marketing.

Standing Out in a Competitive Market

Dice’s innovative approach helps it differentiate itself in a crowded market that has faced recent challenges. Similar to Hopin’s success with virtual events, Dice’s adaptability has attracted significant investor interest.

Investor Perspective: Reimagining the Live Entertainment Industry

Tony Fadell emphasized the need for disruption in the live entertainment industry, stating, “The concert business is a tangled mess of archaic tools and taxing ‘industry standards’ where artists are paid last… DICE reengineers the entire live industry.”

Deliberate City Launches and the Power of Recommendations

Dice has been strategic in its city launches, focusing on building strong relationships with multiple venues to create a comprehensive picture of the local event scene. This approach fuels its recommendation engine, which drives over 40% of ticket sales on the platform.

Prioritizing Curation and User Privacy

Hutcheon believes that Dice’s recommendation algorithms and selective event curation are key advantages. He also emphasized the company’s commitment to user privacy, choosing to build its own dataset rather than relying on data from other social platforms.

Leveraging Partnerships and Expanding into Livestreaming

While Dice doesn’t directly utilize social graph data from other platforms, it does collaborate with partners like Spotify to expand its reach.

The company is also focused on innovating in the livestreaming space, aiming to provide artists with a platform to deliver high-quality, engaging virtual performances. The success of livestreaming during the pandemic demonstrated the demand for accessible and convenient event experiences.

The Future of Live Entertainment: A Hybrid Model

“We were seeing artists on Instagram doing pretty amateurish, lame performances, so we simply appealed to artists by saying: Get paid and do this properly,” Hutcheon said. He envisions a future where live events are increasingly hybrid, combining in-person and virtual experiences.

SoftBank’s Vision for Dice

Yanni Pipilis, managing partner for SoftBank Investment Advisers, stated, “We believe DICE’s technology has the capacity to transform the future of live entertainment… We are excited to partner with DICE to help create remarkable event experiences for fans all over the world.”

Dice is currently on track to have 49,000 artists and creators utilizing its platform by the end of 2022.