The Seattle Opera announced Tuesday that it is now selling tickets over mobile devices — actually, only on iPhones.
That’s somewhat forward thinking of the Opera, although targeting only one phone (and one that costs up to $600) seems somewhat elitist.
But perhaps the technology bent has to do with one of its biggest contributors.
The Opera house was renovated with the bill mostly footed by the McCaw family, which has a long history of technology innovation. Most notable is Craig McCaw, who founded McCaw Cellular Communications, which later became AT&T Wireless. Today, he is the founder and chairman of Kirkland-based Clearwire, a wireless broadband company.
The hall is named after his mother — Marion Oliver McCaw — and nicknamed the MOM Hall.
The Opera said ticket buyers can go to mobile.seattleopera.org on an iPhone to search by production, find a seat or call the box office.
The application was designed by Seattle-based POP, a digital marketing agency. POP developed the site using ExpressTix Mobile and Tessitura, an ticketing software.
The opera said it will soon also be available on other high-end devices.