INTERVIEW
and time . Sayag adds : “ I can ’ t say much about the algorithm , but it ’ s not based on specific pages or accounts - it ’ s based on conversation .
“ We analyse public conversations on Facebook , Twitter , Meetup and Instagram , and look for clues to events such as the name of a place and further information such as time and date . When we are sure everything is correct , we match it with other sources of content then publish it to the app .
“ Once we find the content , that ’ s just the first part of the process . We then go through the inventories of ticket providers and try to match them with the event . If we are successful then users will be able to book tickets straight from the app .”
The app originally launched in New York in 2012 but since then it ’ s expanded into 15 cities across Europe too . Expanding into new countries meant changing the way in which the app worked . Sayag explains : “ Even if you have many states in the US , it ’ s just one country . One thing you are doing right in New York will work the same in San Francisco . It ’ s completely different in Europe . It won ’ t be the same in London as in Madrid , for example , as each
10 April 2016