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Should ticket scalping/touting be banned? BBC article here

FinsburyParkCarrotsFinsburyParkCarrots Seattle, WA Posts: 12,223
edited April 2007 in A Moving Train
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6499721.stm

Just in case people missed this article today, I've put it up, here. Never mind my views, I'd like to hear yours!
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • lucylespianlucylespian Posts: 2,403
    MOst of teh best concert tix I have got, I have got off ebay for reasonable prices I was happy to pay. Yo get a better selection of seats etc, unlike when you are opn line in teh initial rush where you get an offer you have to accept, or risk the next one being terrible. On ebay you can often pick up great seats for good prices, that's where I got my PJ second row seats.
    They recently made it illegal to sell tix for more than 10% over original value her in Qld, but now the ads are phrasedas "these two tix free when you purchase this registered envelope, or guitar pick or postage stamp etc", so effeectively nothing has changed, which I am happy about.
    I have more issues with artists chaarging exhorbitant prices for any half decent seat, while all the cheaper seats are in teh rafters.

    Eric Clapton eg was AUD$350 for any floor seat, whereas PJ was teh same price regardless. I stayed home !! BUggered if I was paying $350, and $100 got be a binoculars seat only.
    Music is not a competetion.
  • wolfbearwolfbear Posts: 3,965
    It is a free market-supply and demand. I don't think scalpers should be completely eliminated, however, I was interested and don't completely disagree with part of Canada's caps on scalping prices. The part I hate is not individuals selling tickets for market value, but that the scalpers seem to get the best and most tickets. I'd love to see the "professional" scalpers limited somehow. Not sure how to do it though. I think PJ does a pretty good job. I have bought tickets from scalpers when I was unable to purchase them and I would do it again. I guess I really don't know the answer. :)
    "I'd rather be with an animal." "Those that can be trusted can change their mind." "The in between is mine." "If I don't lose control, explore and not explode, a preternatural other plane with the power to maintain." "Yeh this is living." "Life is what you make it."
  • even flow?even flow? Posts: 8,066
    If somebody wants to see the band they like that much, that they are willing to pay through the nose to do it. Go ahead and pay through the nose. Be happy you are that close to the band and they still didn't know you existed. There have been many bands that when I couldn't get tickets through the master that I just didn't go. Bad enough some bands are charging over 100 cdn to see them play. I couldn't imagine going to the next level just to hear the tunes live.

    In this day and age. There has to be a way (if bands really do care about their fans) that they can sell tix through an independent web site and not have their fans incur the fees for handling a phone call and printing a ticket up.

    Competing market they say??? Wow, I can't remember the last time I have seen a ticket without "Ticketmaster" stamped on it.
    You've changed your place in this world!
  • vedderelfvedderelf Posts: 100
    Here in St. Louis, the newspaper has been covering "Ticketgate," where 10 police officers confiscated tickets from scalpers during last year's World Series here, and gave them to family and friends to use before putting them back in evidence without a word spoken (tix are scanned, not torn). When all this came out a few weeeks ago, we had big wigs all over the place saying," Well, scalping shouldnt be illegal anyway" (as it is in Missouri).

    I realize that's not exactly on topic, but it goes to show you, those with power and money make the laws, and then bend them to fit their own agenda. So goes it with scalping, where those with money and power will set the rules for everyone else to play by, whether its right or wrong.

    Those police officers, by the way, did not lose their jobs, will not be prosecuted and only face a demotion of one year (can you imagine if it had been a regular citizen?)
  • hippiemomhippiemom Posts: 3,326
    Scalpers are scum. I've never bought from one and never will. They are the reason that good seats are rarely available to the public, except on resale sites like eBay. If they didn't have sweetheart deals with Ticketbastards, and swarm the online sales with hundreds of buyers, we WOULD be able to get decent seats during the public sale.

    As long as people keep buying from them, they're not going anywhere. Boycott scalpers!
    "Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." ~ MLK, 1963
  • sonicreducersonicreducer Posts: 713
    what pisses me off is when you have some assbag that joins a fan club then gets all the presale and puts twenty tix online. then, he proceeds to have some people bid on it (inside people) and as soon as an outsider starts bidding they all stop.

    i paid way too much to see incubus in atlanta this past january b/c of that,...

    but i wouldn't do it for any other band besides pearl jam,...
    you're a real hooker. im gonna slap you in public.
    ~Ron Burgundy
  • josevolutionjosevolution Posts: 30,193
    hippiemom wrote:
    Scalpers are scum. I've never bought from one and never will. They are the reason that good seats are rarely available to the public, except on resale sites like eBay. If they didn't have sweetheart deals with Ticketbastards, and swarm the online sales with hundreds of buyers, we WOULD be able to get decent seats during the public sale.

    As long as people keep buying from them, they're not going anywhere. Boycott scalpers!
    i agree with you on the point of boycotting the scalpers but i've allways put blame on the bands themselves except PJ they are the only one's with any balls to have fought the system i gave up going to see other bands just because of that problem you could never ever score good tickets thru ticket bastards ........thank god for 10C .......
    jesus greets me looks just like me ....
  • surferdudesurferdude Posts: 2,057
    hippiemom wrote:
    Scalpers are scum. I've never bought from one and never will. They are the reason that good seats are rarely available to the public, except on resale sites like eBay. If they didn't have sweetheart deals with Ticketbastards, and swarm the online sales with hundreds of buyers, we WOULD be able to get decent seats during the public sale.

    As long as people keep buying from them, they're not going anywhere. Boycott scalpers!
    I have mixed feelings. The professional scalper I don't like. For most concerts if I have tickets and can't go for some reason I let them go at face, especially if the band is like PJ or Tragically Hip where they try to keep prices low.

    But for my hockey season tickets they always go to the highest bidder. I figure since every game is on tv that if you want to go that bad you'll pay for it. Of a 41 game package I sold 10 games which paid for 3/4 of the season package. It's a sweet deal.

    But music is different. It may be your one shot to see the band you love, so I'm not interested in making it any harder than it already is.
    “One good thing about music,
    when it hits you, you feel to pain.
    So brutalize me with music.”
    ~ Bob Marley
  • jlew24asujlew24asu Posts: 10,118
    hippiemom wrote:
    Scalpers are scum. I've never bought from one and never will. They are the reason that good seats are rarely available to the public, except on resale sites like eBay. If they didn't have sweetheart deals with Ticketbastards, and swarm the online sales with hundreds of buyers, we WOULD be able to get decent seats during the public sale.

    As long as people keep buying from them, they're not going anywhere. Boycott scalpers!

    this is bullshit, in the case of pearl jam anyway.

    you HAVE to be a member from >94 to even get a whiff of the stage. scalpers are helpless. I would gladly pay a scalper for seats in the front row.

    and how is ebay much different from scalpers? how often do tickets get sold for face value or below? almost never.
  • hippiemomhippiemom Posts: 3,326
    jlew24asu wrote:
    this is bullshit, in the case of pearl jam anyway.

    you HAVE to be a member from >94 to even get a whiff of the stage. scalpers are helpless. I would gladly pay a scalper for seats in the front row.

    and how is ebay much different from scalpers? how often do tickets get sold for face value or below? almost never.
    I wasn't talking specifically about Pearl Jam, I was talking about any band. And eBay is not at all different from scalpers ... the people selling on eBay ARE scalpers, and I won't buy from them.
    "Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." ~ MLK, 1963
  • josevolutionjosevolution Posts: 30,193
    jlew24asu wrote:
    this is bullshit, in the case of pearl jam anyway.

    you HAVE to be a member from >94 to even get a whiff of the stage. scalpers are helpless. I would gladly pay a scalper for seats in the front row.

    and how is ebay much different from scalpers? how often do tickets get sold for face value or below? almost never.
    i agree with your 94 comment since i'm a member since 93 so yes i do get front row to PJ, but before 10C was around i would try to get tickets to let's say U2 thru ticketbastard with no luck at all. and when you tried to purchase tickets thru scalpers they had all the tickets but at an inflated 10times the regular price it sucked ...........i never ever scalp for any other shows.....
    jesus greets me looks just like me ....
  • lucylespianlucylespian Posts: 2,403
    Maybe I should clarify my position.
    The biggest problem here is the sale of bulk lots of ticketd to re-sellers.
    I recieved an e-mail fro Virgin Blue 6 mths ago offereing RHCP seats in a pre-sale, cos I musts have registered interest somewhere. The price was $164 or so. I thought it was a bit much, but i bought one.

    When the ticket eventually arrived, after teh open sale, it had $122 stamped on it. So, $40 proft for Virgin, for what, being given selling rights to a concert that was going to sell out anyway.

    Now that I have a problem with. All of my other e-bay buys have been from private sellers at OK prices, for things I would have missed otherwise.
    Music is not a competetion.
  • surferdudesurferdude Posts: 2,057
    josevolution wrote:
    i agree with your 94 comment since i'm a member since 93 so yes i do get front row to PJ, but before 10C was around i would try to get tickets to let's say U2 thru ticketbastard with no luck at all. and when you tried to purchase tickets thru scalpers they had all the tickets but at an inflated 10times the regular price it sucked ...........i never ever scalp for any other shows.....
    Given 10C's ticketing policy I've given up hope of ever having a good seat for a Pearl Jam show. I'm 2 hours north of Seattle and hometown fans don't even get tickets first so I'm hooped as far as ever knowing what the members actually look like. I've realized my best bet is to drop my 10C membership and use that money towards scalped tickets. Don't want to but the 10C system kinda forces me to.
    “One good thing about music,
    when it hits you, you feel to pain.
    So brutalize me with music.”
    ~ Bob Marley
  • gue_bariumgue_barium Posts: 5,515
    FinsburyParkCarrots wrote:
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6499721.stm

    Just in case people missed this article today, I've put it up, here. Never mind my views, I'd like to hear yours!

    If you tour the States someday, I'll buy a ticket from you.
    all posts by ©gue_barium are protected under US copyright law and are not to be reproduced, exchanged or sold
    except by express written permission of ©gue_barium, the author.
  • even flow?even flow? Posts: 8,066
    surferdude wrote:
    Given 10C's ticketing policy I've given up hope of ever having a good seat for a Pearl Jam show. I'm 2 hours north of Seattle and hometown fans don't even get tickets first so I'm hooped as far as ever knowing what the members actually look like. I've realized my best bet is to drop my 10C membership and use that money towards scalped tickets. Don't want to but the 10C system kinda forces me to.


    Maybe you should try ticketmaster next time PJ comes to town. And then tell me how bad you and I have it, since we haven't been in the 10c forever. You could always use the money you make scalping your hockey tickets to fund a front row from someone else trying to make a buck the capitalist way.
    You've changed your place in this world!
  • ArctangentArctangent Posts: 614
    the sooner ticket touting and sellingon ebay is made illegal in the uk the better. then everyone stands a better chance of getting a ticket for the right price from the box office or agency. these vultures should not be allowed to make money off the back of genuine music fans. as for touting not being a major problem, whoever wrote that has obviously never tried to buy a ticket for a major tour or been past a venue on the night of a gig. i seem to recall tickets for pj's gig at the astoria going for hundreds of pounds a pair on ebay. not many ordinary people can afford that. tickets should be sold to people who really want them as opposed to people who think they can sell them on for huge profit.
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