Live Ticker [event_live_ticker]

Shortcode4 Min.Updated: October 2, 2026

The live ticker [event_live_ticker] continuously shows what is running now and what starts next – with a countdown and without reloading the page. Once set up, it runs for days without intervention.

“Ongoing events” at the top with the LIVE badge, the upcoming ones below with a countdown. Cancelled sessions stay visible, marked in red.

What your guests see

Area	What happens
Ongoing events	All sessions that have started and not yet ended, with the “LIVE” badge.
Upcoming events	What comes next, in order, with a countdown (“in 0 hrs 20 min”). The countdown keeps running in the browser.
Automatic switch	When a session starts, it moves up into “Ongoing” by itself. When it is over, it disappears.
Paging	When the ticker rotates, guests can page on their own: swipe on phones, mouse wheel on computers. On touch devices a short hint appears on the first visit.
My Favorites	Shows only the saved sessions.

Where the ticker helps

Foyer and entrance: One screen shows what is running everywhere and what starts next – all rooms mixed.
On the website: As a narrow column next to the calendar or in the sidebar (there is also a widget).
One screen per room: That is what the room monitor add-on is for.

Setting up the ticker

1
Create a page
A new WordPress page, e.g. “What’s on now”. If it is only meant for a screen, leave it out of the menu – guests don’t need to find it.
2
Add the shortcode
Insert a “Shortcode” block with [event_live_ticker]. For a single event: [event_live_ticker parent_id="123"].
3
Add options for continuous use
fullscreen_button="true" shows a full-screen button that also keeps many devices awake. preload_images="true" loads the images in advance – important if the network drops briefly.
4
Open it on the device
Open the page, switch to full screen, done. No further intervention is needed.

Assigned sessions only

The ticker only shows sessions that belong to a main event and have a date and start time. The dashboard lists missing assignments as “Orphaned entries”.

Shortcode parameters

Parameter	Default	Effect
`parent_id`	(all)	Only sessions of this main event.
`venue`	(all)	Only this venue (name).
`category`	(all)	Only this category (name).
`count`	`5`	How many upcoming sessions are shown.
`default`	`all`	`fav` starts with favorites only.
`hide_live` / `hide_upcoming`	`false`	Hides the “Ongoing” or “Upcoming” area.
`always_show_live`	`false`	Shows the “Ongoing” area even when nothing runs – with a note instead of a gap.
`show_live_roll`	`0`	Rotates “Ongoing”; the number says how many entries are visible at once. 0 = all, one below the other.
`show_upcoming_roll`	`0`	The same for “Upcoming”.
`roll_interval`	`10000`	Rotation speed in milliseconds (10000 = 10 seconds).
`gesture_nav`	`true`	Paging by swipe and mouse wheel while rotating. `false` turns it off, hint included.
`fullscreen_button`	`false`	Full-screen button; keeps supported devices awake.
`browser_zoom`	(100 %)	Zoom in full screen: a fixed value from `0.1` to `1.5` or `individual` – a slider (50–150 %) appears and hides itself after 30 seconds without use.
`preload_images`	`false`	Loads all images onto the device in advance. Recommended for continuous use.
`refresh_rate`	(setting, 15 min)	Interval of server requests in milliseconds.
`hide_fav_btn`	`false`	Hides “My Favorites”.
`detail_view`	(setting)	`page` or `modal` for clicks on an entry.
`fake_now`	–	For testing only: pretends it is this moment (`2026-10-17 13:40`).

Typical embeds

[event_live_ticker parent_id="123"]
[event_live_ticker parent_id="123" fullscreen_button="true" preload_images="true"]
[event_live_ticker parent_id="123" show_upcoming_roll="3" roll_interval="10000" browser_zoom="individual"]

Why the display keeps running without internet

Time runs on the device; only the data comes from the server. The countdown, the switch from “Upcoming” to “Ongoing” and removing finished sessions are calculated by the browser every minute. Only the sync with the server – are there new or changed sessions? – follows the configured interval, every 15 minutes by default. If the network drops briefly, the display keeps counting and catches up as soon as the connection is back.

How far ahead the ticker preloads (default: 720 hours, at most 200 sessions) and how often it asks for updates is set under Settings → Live Ticker & Monitor – see Settings.

Check before continuous operation

Every session has a date, a start time and an end time – without it, displays assume one hour. A two-hour concert then drops out of “Ongoing” in the middle of the second act.
Every session belongs to a main event.
Refresh rate set to 10–15 minutes for the event day.
The preload window covers the event but is not unnecessarily large.
The ticker page tested once in full screen on the real device; screen saver and sleep mode switched off.

When the display does not show what it should

Observation	Cause and fix
A session is missing	Usually the date or start time is missing, or it belongs to no main event – the dashboard finds both. It may also lie outside the preload window.
The display freezes	It keeps calculating locally and should never stop. If it does, a caching or optimization plugin is probably combining scripts: exclude `ec-live.js` from optimization.
Changes arrive late	That is the refresh rate. Set it to 10–15 minutes for the event day.
The screen turns off	Switch off screen saver and power saving on the device; `fullscreen_button="true"` also helps.