Artificial intelligence in artistic and cultural life – a new feature in Müpa Budapest’s ticket sales system

2022. September 15.

As one of Hungary’s best-known and most modern cultural institutions, Müpa Budapest has strived from the very beginning to ensure that innovation and creativity are fully demonstrated not only in the selection of programmes, but also throughout the entire Müpa Budapest experience.

The crisis-rocked and rapidly changing world we live in today has also made it difficult to predict the dynamics of ticket sales and, as a result, to determine the true market value of a given performance. As a technologically innovative solution to this challenge, Müpa Budapest has become one of the first venues in Hungary to introduce demand-based, dynamic pricing for the ticket sales of some of its performances. Ever since its inception, Müpa Budapest has consciously considered it its task to make the daily lives of its visitors more comfortable and enjoyable through the use of modern and imaginative solutions, and for this it relies on the needs and feedback of the audience just as much as it does on the effective application of the data-driven technological solutions that are so essential to how the world functions nowadays. The introduction of dynamic pricing combines both factors, since the essence of this fine-tuning pricing strategy is to have the pricing engine used by the institution calculate and review the optimal prices of the tickets for a performance several times a day, based on supply and demand.

The operation of this ticket sales system supported by artificial intelligence and based on changing ticket purchasing habits is made possible by a method that has already been successfully used globally in several industries, as well as in the performing arts sector abroad. Although the method is considered novel in the Hungarian cultural market, many institutions around the world have already taken advantage of this opportunity to sell tickets, with variable-priced tickets available for certain Broadway and Metropolitan Opera productions in New York, for example.

At Müpa Budapest, visitors will get their first taste of dynamic pricing when purchasing tickets for performances of Solus Amor, one of Recirquel Company Budapest’s biggest cirque danse hits, taking place between 27 October and 25 November. Müpa Budapest places special emphasis on the satisfaction of its ever-expanding community, which is why it is taking the utmost care in introducing this dynamic pricing, and of course without ignoring cardholders of the free Müpa+ membership programme, with its long tradition and countless benefits. This new innovation being introduced now does not affect the regular pre-purchase options reserved for membership programme cardholders or those slated for future expansion; advance purchasing available to membership programme cardholders will therefore continue as usual, with fixed-price seats.

If you have not yet joined Müpa Budapest’s membership programme, register now so that once you reach the appropriate level, you too can take advantage of the opportunity to make pre-purchases!

You can learn more about dynamic pricing under the Online Shopping menu item.