Key highlights in 2024
- Over 200 releases on Peppered
- 100+ cultural venues served
- 12 new venues onboarded
- Integration with 6 new third-party systems
- Launch of innovative Ticket Sharing feature with Dutch National Opera & Ballet
- Launched digital accessibility audit making compliance more cost-effective for venues around the world
2024 marked a transformative year for CultureSuite, with significant expansion in our venue partnerships and major technological advancements. Our community-driven approach continued to shape the future of digital experiences in arts and culture, resulting in innovative solutions that benefit the entire sector.
From New York's Flushing Meadows to historic European concert halls, over 100 cultural venues now trust our platform to power their digital presence. But numbers only tell part of the story.
Our real measure of success lies in the innovations born from collaboration across the sector: a ticket-sharing feature conceived in Amsterdam now helps venues worldwide understand their full audience; a storytelling tool developed with one theatre has transformed how dozens share their artistic vision.
This is the power of community-driven development – when one venue innovates, everyone benefits. As we look back on 2024's achievements, we celebrate not just growth in numbers, but the strengthening of a global community united in making culture more accessible, sustainable, and engaging for all.
Platform innovation
- Implemented server-side tagging for improved analytics
- Enhanced payment processing with iDeal 2.0 and Mollie Connect
- Introduced automated ticket sharing functionality
- Expanded ticketing system integrations
At the heart of 2024's success was significant advancement in our platform capabilities. The implementation of server-side tagging revolutionised how our venues collect and analyse audience data, ensuring both privacy compliance and marketing effectiveness.
Our payment infrastructure saw major improvements with the integration of iDeal 2.0 and Mollie Connect, streamlining the ticket purchasing process while enhancing security. The innovative Ticket Sharing feature, developed in collaboration with the Dutch National Opera & Ballet, transformed how venues connect with their full audience, not just ticket buyers.
We expanded the number of systems that can integrate with Peppered significantly. Now, there are seamless connections with Spektrix, SeatGeek, ActiveTickets, iTheatre, VoorDeMensen, and Tessitura/TNEW. This expansion ensures more venues can benefit from automated data synchronisation, enhanced patron management and unity between their website and other platforms.
On top of that, additional functionality and enhancements were developed for existing integrations. An important update to our Tixly integration showcases our commitment to refining existing partnerships. The second generation of Tixly Opt-in sync introduces bi-directional synchronisation—opt-ins can now flow seamlessly between Peppered and Tixly in both directions, saving venues significant time by automating what was previously a manual process, while maintaining data integrity across both platforms
We also launched Secure Tickets – developed In partnership with De Kleine Komedie and Ovatic. It gives venues a comprehensive suite of features to combat ticket resale and enhance security. The system includes dynamic barcodes that regenerate every 20 seconds, just-in-time access controls, SMS verification, and personalised ticketing.
Another significant enhancement was the streamlined refund process for Ovatic users through Mollie integration in partnership with Dutch National Opera & Ballet. This automated system enables visitors to request refunds directly through their account for tickets purchased via iDeal or credit card.
Technical infrastructure
- New partnership with Exonet for enhanced hosting
- Our hosting is now ISO 27001:2022 compliant
- Improved security protocols and performance
- Sustainable hosting powered by renewable energy
Our partnership with Exonet marked a new era in hosting reliability and performance. This collaboration delivers not just improved speed and security, but also aligns with our commitment to sustainability through energy-efficient data centres powered by renewable energy.
Our regular three-weekly platform updates ensure our community constantly benefits from the latest features and security enhancements. This agile approach to development means venues always have access to cutting-edge technology without the burden of managing complex updates.
Accessibility and compliance
- Comprehensive accessibility audit program launched
- Partnership with Digitaal Toegankelijk
- Enhanced WCAG compliance across Peppered
- Updated cookie consent management for GDPR
- Preparation for European Accessibility Act 2025
This year saw the launch of our comprehensive accessibility audit program in partnership with Digitaal Toegankelijk. This initiative goes beyond basic compliance, offering venues a cost-effective path to achieving AA WCAG 2.2 standards as part of preparing for the European Accessibility Act 2025.
Wilminktheater en Muziekcentrum Enschede was the first venue to receive an accessibility audit of their website, but all venues will benefit from technical accessibility upgrades to the Peppered platform. Here’s what Marieke Bakker, Head of Marketing at Wilminktheater said of the audit:
"Inclusivity and accessibility aren't just buzzwords at Wilminktheater. We're committed to making our online space welcoming for everyone, and we're excited to partner with CultureSuite to make that a reality."
The next venue to benefit from this wide-ranging project will be our long-standing partner for accessibility, Het Nationale Theater.
But the audit isn’t just about Peppered-powered websites. We’re also auditing and improving the accessibility of the Peppered platform. Not only will this improve the overall UX and usability of Peppered, but it also helps create a more inclusive environment for venue staff using Peppered to manage their website.
Our platform-wide updates to cookie consent management ensure venues are compatible with Google Consent Mode v2 and help maintain GDPR compliance while collecting valuable audience data. These improvements reflect our commitment to balancing privacy requirements with effective digital marketing.
Notable success stories
The Joyce Theater (New York, US)
- Seamless integration with Tessitura
- Enhanced mobile responsiveness
- Improved content management capabilities
- Streamlined ticket purchasing journey
The Joyce Theater's digital transformation exemplifies our ability to enhance the patron experience while streamlining operations. By integrating seamlessly with Tessitura, we created a mobile-responsive website that matches the theatre's artistic excellence. The new platform significantly improved content management capabilities, allowing the marketing team to create dynamic, engaging content that drives ticket sales.
The Fire Station (Sunderland, UK)
- Successful digital identity separation
- Integration with Spektrix
- Automated event management
- Mobile-optimised design
For The Fire Station, 2024 marked a successful digital independence journey. We helped establish their distinct online identity while maintaining efficient operations through Spektrix integration. The automated event management system and mobile-optimised design have transformed how they engage with audiences, resulting in increased online engagement and ticket sales.
Looking Ahead to 2025
Our roadmap for 2025 focuses on enhanced CMS capabilities, comprehensive accessibility improvements and the continuation of our community-driven roadmap. We're particularly excited about developing new ways to support venues in data-driven decision-making while maintaining the highest standards of privacy and security.
CMS Evolution: The Next Chapter
As we close 2024, we're preparing to launch a significant upgrade to our content management system. This carefully planned evolution demonstrates our commitment to continuous improvement while respecting our users' needs.
The initial phase, launching in January 2025, introduces a refreshed interface and enhanced user experience across key modules. This modular approach allows venues to adapt to improvements at their own pace, with the ability to switch between classic and new versions as needed.
Our development roadmap for this upgrade has been shaped by extensive user feedback and real-world usage patterns. The new interface brings intuitive workflows and improved navigation while maintaining the robust functionality our community relies on. If you’d like to contribute to the new CMS, feel free to leave us some feedback.
True to our community-driven philosophy, we've established a dedicated feedback group to help guide these developments. This collaborative approach ensures that every enhancement serves the real needs of cultural venues, from small theatres to major institutions.
Community Impact
The success of our community-driven approach is evident in the numerous features developed from venue suggestions. The Ticket Sharing feature, conceived with Dutch National Opera & Ballet, exemplifies how one venue's challenge can lead to sector-wide innovation. This collaborative spirit continues to drive our development, ensuring our platform evolves in line with real venue needs.
Our commitment to sustainability, both in our technology choices and business practices, positions us to support venues in their own environmental responsibilities. Through shared resources and efficient systems, we're helping reduce the cultural sector's digital carbon footprint while maintaining high performance.
Here’s to 2025.
