Despite its age, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (founded in 1946) has always been alert to innovation (and no doubt that attitude has contributed to its longevity). It was the first major U.K. orchestra to launch its own record label--albeit in a smaller way than today's much more common model, popularized by LSO Live--and one of the first to spearhead a really top-notch education program. And now, it, too, is getting into the app market.
RPO Rewards is a co-production of the Royal Phil and the apps company Kodime. The idea seems rather along the lines of rewards schemes run by many businesses, from airlines to supermarkets. Customers get points for buying, and those points add up to buy, well, rewards: RPO CDs, a one-month subscription to Spotify Premium, Amazon or Odeon Cinema vouchers, crates of wine, tickets to a Royal Albert Hall concert. The list is varied, indeed.
It's an interesting approach, taking the implicit view, as it does, that potential concert goers like things other than classical music. And there's much to be said for a scheme that Mozart or Mahler can, and perhaps should, take a place in our lives alongside the movies and a night in with a nice glass of wine, and vice versa.
Tickets for concerts can be paid for through the app using a phone or tablet. And it can also be used to learn and keep track of upcoming RPO events.
