Click it for tickets.

• Position: Triangle - Web-based ticketing company Etix.com Inc.

Comedian Louis C.K. made headlines in June when he announced tickets for his fall stand-up tour would be sold exclusively through his website. Rolling Stone speculated that the artist-controlled model might offer a new way of doing business for traveling entertainers of all stripes. But Travis Janovich, the founder and CEO of Morrisville-based Etix.com Inc.--the ticket platform C.K. uses to process sales--isn't so sure the comedian's gambit signals a sea change. Most of Etix's more than 4,100 clients are performance venues, festivals and fairs. "Promoters still provide a ton of value," Janovich says. "It takes something really special, someone really powerful in the social-media realm, like a Louis C.K., to even have a chance at working. It's not very realistic that a band is going to go sell their own tickets for their own tour."

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Janovich, 39, launched Etix.com in 2000 before broadband connections became the norm, pitching his idea for Web-based ticketing to smaller venues by adding innovation: "We were the first people to do print-at-home ticketing." Now it's focusing on helping venues and promoters connect directly with fans, investing millions in digital tools, such as customized mobile apps, email marketing and websites with social media integrated into them. The new models have fueled growth--an average of 30% of revenue annually, Janovich says--reaching about $20 million last year. It sells more than 50 million tickets yearly in more than 40 countries and employs 85.

Janovich says the business model is shifting to give customers...