FanSnap, a new startup aimed at making it easy to find the cheapest tickets to any live event, has just officially launched in public beta. The service takes an Expedia-esque approach to the event ticketing world, applying the same model made commonplace in the travel industry to the arena of concerts and sporting events.

The interface is simple: You type in the name of the artist/team/performer you’re trying to see. FanSnap gives you a list of their upcoming shows. You then click the appropriate city and are given a list of all the available tickets and prices from about 50 different providers.

FanSnap also has a venue mapping feature for a handful of major venues in big cities. This is actually pretty handy. You get a list of available tickets on the side of the screen, and as you mouse over each one, its location in the venue pops up on an adjacent map — letting you see exactly where you’d be sitting, without having to do a lot of extra work. FanSnap intends to eventually have all major venues included in the mapping service.

The folks behind FanSnap come from a variety of familiar places. Its founders — Mike Janes and Mark Towfiq — made the move from StubHub and Flock, respectively. (Janes also previously served as GM of Apple’s online Apple Store.) Other execs have history with Google, Yahoo, MTV, and eBay. The company, just over a year in development, already has 17 employees at its Silicon Valley headquarters. It’s backed by General Catalyst Partners.

Our vote: A smart idea with solid execution. FanSnap is a snap to use and can definitely save you some time and money. Bookmark this one now. You’ll be glad you did the next time you set out to get tickets.