Tool

I like the idea of tiered pricing right out the gate when the tickets go on sale. Case in point, I paid about $200 for a pair of 14th row center seats to see Vampire Weekend next spring (this was through the LiveNation mobile app presale). My buddy paid about $20 or so less per ticket to sit 12 rows behind us. (It was 140 or so for the 1st three rows IIRC) I could have easily got tickets for less than $130 / pair for that show, we just would have been a lot further back from the stage. That's the way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Guns & Roses also got creative with the ticket pricing when they announced their reunion tour a couple of years ago. I'm all for new ideas to take scalpers out of the equation. If the marked up tickets don't sell, they can always put them back out at a lower price.

At least if the seats are tiered from the get-go, scalpers will likely get phased out of the more expensive seats as their potential for markup will be limited. Like @PJ44 suggested, at least the money is going to whomever is actually putting on the show as opposed to some scumbag on the other side of the country.

My issue with the platinum seats is this: what's to keep Ticketmaster from holding back X amount of tickets for shows they know will sell out quickly, and then rebranding them as platinum a month later at a 250% markup?

I'm all for taking the scalpers out of the game, and would rather see the money go to the artists / venue etc, but this platinum ticket thing is shady AF.

tempo_n_groove said:

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Merkin Baller said:

I like the idea of tiered pricing right out the gate when the tickets go on sale. Case in point, I paid about $200 for a pair of 14th row center seats to see Vampire Weekend next spring (this was through the LiveNation mobile app presale). My buddy paid about $20 or so less per ticket to sit 12 rows behind us. (It was 140 or so for the 1st three rows IIRC) I could have easily got tickets for less than $130 / pair for that show, we just would have been a lot further back from the stage. That's the way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Guns & Roses also got creative with the ticket pricing when they announced their reunion tour a couple of years ago. I'm all for new ideas to take scalpers out of the equation. If the marked up tickets don't sell, they can always put them back out at a lower price.

At least if the seats are tiered from the get-go, scalpers will likely get phased out of the more expensive seats as their potential for markup will be limited. Like @PJ44 suggested, at least the money is going to whomever is actually putting on the show as opposed to some scumbag on the other side of the country.

My issue with the platinum seats is this: what's to keep Ticketmaster from holding back X amount of tickets for shows they know will sell out quickly, and then rebranding them as platinum a month later at a 250% markup?

I'm all for taking the scalpers out of the game, and would rather see the money go to the artists / venue etc, but this platinum ticket thing is shady AF.

Tiered tickets to me equals a caste system.

Only if you have money can you be up close to the band!!!!

Get the F outta here.

Oh and the tix labeled as "platinum" are held back by TM and sold for maximum profit.  That's how they do shit.

Merkin Baller said:

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tempo_n_groove said:

Merkin Baller said:

I like the idea of tiered pricing right out the gate when the tickets go on sale. Case in point, I paid about $200 for a pair of 14th row center seats to see Vampire Weekend next spring (this was through the LiveNation mobile app presale). My buddy paid about $20 or so less per ticket to sit 12 rows behind us. (It was 140 or so for the 1st three rows IIRC) I could have easily got tickets for less than $130 / pair for that show, we just would have been a lot further back from the stage. That's the way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Guns & Roses also got creative with the ticket pricing when they announced their reunion tour a couple of years ago. I'm all for new ideas to take scalpers out of the equation. If the marked up tickets don't sell, they can always put them back out at a lower price.

At least if the seats are tiered from the get-go, scalpers will likely get phased out of the more expensive seats as their potential for markup will be limited. Like @PJ44 suggested, at least the money is going to whomever is actually putting on the show as opposed to some scumbag on the other side of the country.

My issue with the platinum seats is this: what's to keep Ticketmaster from holding back X amount of tickets for shows they know will sell out quickly, and then rebranding them as platinum a month later at a 250% markup?

I'm all for taking the scalpers out of the game, and would rather see the money go to the artists / venue etc, but this platinum ticket thing is shady AF.

Tiered tickets to me equals a caste system.

Only if you have money can you be up close to the band!!!!

Get the F outta here.

Oh and the tix labeled as "platinum" are held back by TM and sold for maximum profit.  That's how they do shit.

Those front row tickets are way more valuable than the back row of the floor, I have no problem with the artists or venue pricing the tickets based on perceived value from the get go.

If they are over priced then people won't pay and the prices will eventually drop.

I understand your argument, but having one price for all floor seats creates the environment for the scalpers to thrive, so I'm on board with anything that will hurt the secondary market at this point.

People that pay big money for tickets aren't usually "fans" and would rather be seen or impress a person(s).  Just from an experience standpoint.

Zod said:

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tempo_n_groove said:

Merkin Baller said:

I like the idea of tiered pricing right out the gate when the tickets go on sale. Case in point, I paid about $200 for a pair of 14th row center seats to see Vampire Weekend next spring (this was through the LiveNation mobile app presale). My buddy paid about $20 or so less per ticket to sit 12 rows behind us. (It was 140 or so for the 1st three rows IIRC) I could have easily got tickets for less than $130 / pair for that show, we just would have been a lot further back from the stage. That's the way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Guns & Roses also got creative with the ticket pricing when they announced their reunion tour a couple of years ago. I'm all for new ideas to take scalpers out of the equation. If the marked up tickets don't sell, they can always put them back out at a lower price.

At least if the seats are tiered from the get-go, scalpers will likely get phased out of the more expensive seats as their potential for markup will be limited. Like @PJ44 suggested, at least the money is going to whomever is actually putting on the show as opposed to some scumbag on the other side of the country.

My issue with the platinum seats is this: what's to keep Ticketmaster from holding back X amount of tickets for shows they know will sell out quickly, and then rebranding them as platinum a month later at a 250% markup?

I'm all for taking the scalpers out of the game, and would rather see the money go to the artists / venue etc, but this platinum ticket thing is shady AF.

Tiered tickets to me equals a caste system.

Only if you have money can you be up close to the band!!!!

Get the F outta here.

Oh and the tix labeled as "platinum" are held back by TM and sold for maximum profit.  That's how they do shit.

The thing is, most of those tickets weren't getting in the hands of fans.  They were getting in the hands of scalpers, and the scalpers would flip them for huge profits.  I also loathe the whole tiered thing.  I've had had pretty good luck over the years at getting decent tickets to shows.   As a result I'm super uppidity when it comes to tickets, and loathe not having good ones.  Still, what GNR and other bands are doing with tiered/platinum tickets allows them to earn that money, instead of scalpers.

That being said.  There's the other route.  If you're going to underprice your tickets, you need to control the tickets.  I think PJ's last tour was really good for that.   They continued to sell tickets much lower that what their peers charge, but used the 10c and verified fan to try and keep them out of the hands of scalpers.   I think it worked pretty well because tickets were fairly scarce on reseller websites.

Also platinum tickets money is going to the promoter, who pays the band.   TM makes it's money off the service fee's, not the actual cost of the ticket.

That's an excellent comment, even from my biased perspective. Let's remember many bands and promoters distribute tickets directly to scalpers to sell  to generate revenue. My preference would be to just put the higher price on the face of the ticket for the good seats

Also, charging the same price for prime seats and terrible seats... that I just dont get. It's great PJ tries to keep the cost down, but is that really true for those of us not smart enough to join a club 20 years ago and sit a mile away?

$125 for a brutally terrible seat does not feel like a deal. Yeah it's for a tremendous band but not hearing a Mike solo because Jimmy has to tell Jill how much he loves her during Mike's solo is a frustrating experience. 

FWIW I have always believed requesting a customers money without disclosing seat location was a poor business practice. I pay the price of that 20 year old decision I made to not join (until I learned of the GA policy), but I fully understand it

I respect PJ tries to address this with their GA random draw, but ticket distribution still seems significantly unbalanced. 

Excluding those with less money, or those without long term membership.  Both are forms of exclusion.

nicknyr15 said:

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pjl44 said:

PJ_Soul said:

mr bungle said:

nicknyr15 said:

Miraculously more tickets popped up for Barclays. You know , “the platinum” ones. Over $400 face value. I can’t believe TM is allowed to openly price gouge and it’s legal 

yeah, they are essentially working as a in-house scalping company based on supply and demand.  "prices may fluctuate based on demand"

Seriously, how it is legal is beyond me. I really really wish some leaders would do something about it. Some legislation against this is badly needed, in Canada and the US.

Concert tickets are luxury items and promoters/bands should be able to charge whatever and however the market bears. I don't like paying $400 for a ticket either so I don't go to many high profile arena shows. If you live near an arena, there is no shortage of $20-50 club shows in your area.

This is all nonsense to me. A luxury item? No. And to only be able to see less popular bands is a non argument. It’s all bullshit to me 

I'm sorry you feel entitled to name your own price for an arena rock concert

tempo_n_groove said:

show previous quotes

Merkin Baller said:

I like the idea of tiered pricing right out the gate when the tickets go on sale. Case in point, I paid about $200 for a pair of 14th row center seats to see Vampire Weekend next spring (this was through the LiveNation mobile app presale). My buddy paid about $20 or so less per ticket to sit 12 rows behind us. (It was 140 or so for the 1st three rows IIRC) I could have easily got tickets for less than $130 / pair for that show, we just would have been a lot further back from the stage. That's the way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Guns & Roses also got creative with the ticket pricing when they announced their reunion tour a couple of years ago. I'm all for new ideas to take scalpers out of the equation. If the marked up tickets don't sell, they can always put them back out at a lower price.

At least if the seats are tiered from the get-go, scalpers will likely get phased out of the more expensive seats as their potential for markup will be limited. Like @PJ44 suggested, at least the money is going to whomever is actually putting on the show as opposed to some scumbag on the other side of the country.

My issue with the platinum seats is this: what's to keep Ticketmaster from holding back X amount of tickets for shows they know will sell out quickly, and then rebranding them as platinum a month later at a 250% markup?

I'm all for taking the scalpers out of the game, and would rather see the money go to the artists / venue etc, but this platinum ticket thing is shady AF.

Tiered tickets to me equals a caste system.

Only if you have money can you be up close to the band!!!!

Get the F outta here.

Oh and the tix labeled as "platinum" are held back by TM and sold for maximum profit.  That's how they do shit.

That "caste system" is the natural order. The internet and then smartphones opened the floodgates. The horse is out of the barn. So now it's just a matter of how much bands, sports teams, etc. want to control it or capitalize on it. Pearl Jam is clearly on the extreme fan friendly end of that spectrum. 

pjl44 said:

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HesCalledDyer said:

pjl44 said:

PJ_Soul said:

mr bungle said:

nicknyr15 said:

Miraculously more tickets popped up for Barclays. You know , “the platinum” ones. Over $400 face value. I can’t believe TM is allowed to openly price gouge and it’s legal 

yeah, they are essentially working as a in-house scalping company based on supply and demand.  "prices may fluctuate based on demand"

Seriously, how it is legal is beyond me. I really really wish some leaders would do something about it. Some legislation against this is badly needed, in Canada and the US.

Concert tickets are luxury items and promoters/bands should be able to charge whatever and however the market bears. I don't like paying $400 for a ticket either so I don't go to many high profile arena shows. If you live near an arena, there is no shortage of $20-50 club shows in your area.

I get what you're trying to say but it's a horrible take and reeks of classism.

I've been priced out of a lot of tours the last several years. Rush, Genesis, and Depeche Mode come to mind. Would have loved to see them all but they were just too expensive. I didn't throw a tantrum and insist they sell tickets cheaper. I just found other cheaper shows to go to.

So when tickets are say $100 and you get shut out and then you get an email that says they have the tickets you wanted for sale, but they’re $500 now, that extra money goes to the acts? I’m not talking about tiered pricing, which makes sense, even though I think it can be handled poorly for the consumer.

Well, ticket scalpers are tools. Soooooo...

DewieCox said:

show previous quotes

pjl44 said:

HesCalledDyer said:

pjl44 said:

PJ_Soul said:

mr bungle said:

nicknyr15 said:

Miraculously more tickets popped up for Barclays. You know , “the platinum” ones. Over $400 face value. I can’t believe TM is allowed to openly price gouge and it’s legal 

yeah, they are essentially working as a in-house scalping company based on supply and demand.  "prices may fluctuate based on demand"

Seriously, how it is legal is beyond me. I really really wish some leaders would do something about it. Some legislation against this is badly needed, in Canada and the US.

Concert tickets are luxury items and promoters/bands should be able to charge whatever and however the market bears. I don't like paying $400 for a ticket either so I don't go to many high profile arena shows. If you live near an arena, there is no shortage of $20-50 club shows in your area.

I get what you're trying to say but it's a horrible take and reeks of classism.

I've been priced out of a lot of tours the last several years. Rush, Genesis, and Depeche Mode come to mind. Would have loved to see them all but they were just too expensive. I didn't throw a tantrum and insist they sell tickets cheaper. I just found other cheaper shows to go to.

So when tickets are say $100 and you get shut out and then you get an email that says they have the tickets you wanted for sale, but they’re $500 now, that extra money goes to the acts? I’m not talking about tiered pricing, which makes sense, even though I think it can be handled poorly for the consumer.