A shady conversation with a "legitimate" Live Nation
shep
Posts: 5,765
So.... I called Live Nation the other day...
Actually specifically, I called the House of Blue Houston. I've been to a lot of shows there recently and I have tickets for the upcoming Chris Cornell acoustic songbook show there in early April. Last time I was there I really took note of this section that they have in pretty much the best viewpoint in the venue, which is sectioned off and has a bunch of seated tables... So I thought to myself that the Cornell show here is sold out, and it would be really kool to have a table with the best sight lines in the place, rather than get here early and have a claim a place in the pit and pay for $7 beers all night while I wait.
I mean these tables are at the perfect position. About 12 m back from the stage there is an 18" step up, and all the tables are right there, behind the soundboard, with perfect sight lines. The sound board is on the floor below, so there is probably a 2 m gap where nobody (except the sound guys) can stand in front of these elevated tables.
So back to the story... while in the place I ask one of the waitresses how I can get one of these tables... She tells me I need to call the Foundation Room and talk to them. So I called the foundation room... got a description of how they work (which I think is a little bs, but I can understand it, it makes sense)... I'm not going to get into it here as it's not the point of the story...
I find out the foundation room isn't for me, but, after a lengthy conversation the lady who organizes the foundation room, she gives me the phone number of Live Nation's VIP Sales director in Houston and tells me to get in touch with this guy, cause he might have something more my style.
So I phone Joseph - and heres where the story gets interesting - turns out Joe's not the VIP sales director for Houston - just the House of Blues Houston and another place called Verizon Wireless Theatre (another mid size venue - 1600 capacity). So I get to talking to Joe, and he lays out that he can't get a table for me for the Cornell show, as I was originally hoping, but he starts laying out how he works. What Joe does with Live Nation for these 2 venues is VIP ticket sales. He proceeds to explain that he can sell me tickets for all the best seats in the house for any upcoming show at these 2 venues... all I have to do is pay up front a pair of tickets to 10 shows for $125/ticket/show - so $2500 total. I pay for these tickets up front and I can use them as I please over the next year. He also tells me that these will be the best seats in the house for the show, gaurenteed.... he can get me tables at the House of Blues or seats in the 1st 2 rows of the seated section upstairs (which I've never sat there, but the seats look amazing)... or for GA shows at Verizon seats basically stage side and for seated shows tickets in row 1.
Now at first I thought this was really interesting, and was thinking about doing it... but when I got to thinking about it, I don't understand how the selling of tickets like this is even legal. The median price for a ticket at shows at either of these venues is about $40, and he's selling them for $125. And what's worse, is that he's not even a scalper! He works for the company that sells the original tickets! Basically what he's telling me is that Live Nation with-holds the best seats in the house and sells them drastically above face value! Of course I didn't say any of this on the phone.. I politely asked him if there were VIP sales for the other major venues in Houston - notably the Cynthia MItchell Pavallion (the 18,000 capacity ampitheatre at the north of the city) and the Toyota Center (the basketball/hockey stadium - capacity about 18,500) - and he said yes and gave me their names and numbers....
So now I'm wondering how is any of this ethically possible. I am an engineer, and in my world, this is pretty much the equivalent of taking someone else's patented idea, painting it a different colour, and selling it at twice the price without telling the original patent holder.... I would lose my license over something like this.... How does Live Nation get away with this crap?
Actually specifically, I called the House of Blue Houston. I've been to a lot of shows there recently and I have tickets for the upcoming Chris Cornell acoustic songbook show there in early April. Last time I was there I really took note of this section that they have in pretty much the best viewpoint in the venue, which is sectioned off and has a bunch of seated tables... So I thought to myself that the Cornell show here is sold out, and it would be really kool to have a table with the best sight lines in the place, rather than get here early and have a claim a place in the pit and pay for $7 beers all night while I wait.
I mean these tables are at the perfect position. About 12 m back from the stage there is an 18" step up, and all the tables are right there, behind the soundboard, with perfect sight lines. The sound board is on the floor below, so there is probably a 2 m gap where nobody (except the sound guys) can stand in front of these elevated tables.
So back to the story... while in the place I ask one of the waitresses how I can get one of these tables... She tells me I need to call the Foundation Room and talk to them. So I called the foundation room... got a description of how they work (which I think is a little bs, but I can understand it, it makes sense)... I'm not going to get into it here as it's not the point of the story...
I find out the foundation room isn't for me, but, after a lengthy conversation the lady who organizes the foundation room, she gives me the phone number of Live Nation's VIP Sales director in Houston and tells me to get in touch with this guy, cause he might have something more my style.
So I phone Joseph - and heres where the story gets interesting - turns out Joe's not the VIP sales director for Houston - just the House of Blues Houston and another place called Verizon Wireless Theatre (another mid size venue - 1600 capacity). So I get to talking to Joe, and he lays out that he can't get a table for me for the Cornell show, as I was originally hoping, but he starts laying out how he works. What Joe does with Live Nation for these 2 venues is VIP ticket sales. He proceeds to explain that he can sell me tickets for all the best seats in the house for any upcoming show at these 2 venues... all I have to do is pay up front a pair of tickets to 10 shows for $125/ticket/show - so $2500 total. I pay for these tickets up front and I can use them as I please over the next year. He also tells me that these will be the best seats in the house for the show, gaurenteed.... he can get me tables at the House of Blues or seats in the 1st 2 rows of the seated section upstairs (which I've never sat there, but the seats look amazing)... or for GA shows at Verizon seats basically stage side and for seated shows tickets in row 1.
Now at first I thought this was really interesting, and was thinking about doing it... but when I got to thinking about it, I don't understand how the selling of tickets like this is even legal. The median price for a ticket at shows at either of these venues is about $40, and he's selling them for $125. And what's worse, is that he's not even a scalper! He works for the company that sells the original tickets! Basically what he's telling me is that Live Nation with-holds the best seats in the house and sells them drastically above face value! Of course I didn't say any of this on the phone.. I politely asked him if there were VIP sales for the other major venues in Houston - notably the Cynthia MItchell Pavallion (the 18,000 capacity ampitheatre at the north of the city) and the Toyota Center (the basketball/hockey stadium - capacity about 18,500) - and he said yes and gave me their names and numbers....
So now I'm wondering how is any of this ethically possible. I am an engineer, and in my world, this is pretty much the equivalent of taking someone else's patented idea, painting it a different colour, and selling it at twice the price without telling the original patent holder.... I would lose my license over something like this.... How does Live Nation get away with this crap?
Houston, Texas... Believe it or not, there are 7 million people here... must be a couple of fans who'd love to see you play.
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Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Houston has a hockey team!?
Yeah if they own the venue they can do whatever they want unfortunately. 300% markup is pretty ridiculous, usually if you get "season" tickets the prices are reduced. I know at the Meadows/Comcast/Dodge whatever its called here in Hartford you can get packages for the shows like that.
Hate to say it but that has been going on for many, many years. When was the last time you knew someone who got prime seats from a LN or TM sale?
And its getting worse. TM and LN want to capture the profits being made on the secondary market. Prices for the best seats will keeping going up until they identify that price point where no one will buy. And there will always be a % of the best seats reserved for VIPs and service providers to the LN and TM venues.
It wouldn't surprise me if the % of tickets actually available to the public in larger markets (NYC, LA, Chi) is very low.