New App for Edinburgh Festival

Tickets, reviews and locations via your iPhone

Visitors to this year’s Edinburgh summer arts festivals will be able to use their iPhone to find nearby performances, read reviews and track down half-price tickets in real time, thanks to a new service from Loc8 Solutions.

The Edinburgh Festivals Guide app is the official mobile listings application of the Edinburgh Festivals and will be available to the 100,000 iPhone users expected at this year’s festivals through the iPhone App Store.

Using the iPhone’s GPS, Edinburgh Festivals Guide is able to search nearby venues for performances about to start, based on whether the user is in the mood for comedy, theatre, dance or anything else the festivals have to offer. Edinburgh Festivals Guide also has an exclusive live connection to the festivals’ Half Price Hut, allowing users to get the best price on the hottest tickets in town, the minute they become available.

The Festival guide in action

The full list of feature available to users includes:

• Complete listings for all seven Edinburgh festivals
• Uses GPS to locate the nearest shows and venues
• Specify a location to find nearby events and venues
• Sort results by distance from your location, start time or popularity rating
• Search for shows and venues by name, time or type
• Display results on map
• Get simple directions straight to the venue door
• Read reviews of shows and write your own
• Call box office direct from listings and books your tickets
• View photos of events and venues
• Find out which tickets are on sale at the Half Price Hut

Loc8 founder Gavin Dutch said: “It’s great to have our first major contract with Edinburgh festivals. There’s so much happening in Edinburgh during August that, particularly if you’re only here for a limited time, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by choice. Hopefully, we can take some of the pressure off, by allowing users to find out what’s going on down the road and read audience reviews.”

Kath M Mainland, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, commented: “This is an exciting new listings service for our visitors, performers and venues on the iPhone. This application gives us a unique opportunity to broaden the delivery of our Festival listings services and reach new audiences. We are especially pleased that we have been able to partner with Loc8, a dynamic young local company in leading the way with this new technology.”

Loc8 has several other deals in the pipeline, which would see the software also serving up listings, reviews and special offers for everything from restaurants and bars to local events and music festivals. The company has its origins in the Edinburgh Pre-Incubator Scheme (EPIS),  which aims to promote and grow new businesses in the area.

Dutch concluded: “Our aim is to grow a strong, Scotland-based business, working with local partners to provide location-based information on the full range of entertainment, bars, restaurants and other events in cities everywhere. It’s a real benefit to users, as well as supporting local businesses and cultural activity.”

The app is available now for £1.79.