Concert Tickets are a fucking scam now

Ticketmaster owner under DOJ investigation.

If you look at seat maps sometimes over half the tickets in any venue for well-known artists are resale tickets. The simple solution is to make concert tickets like airplane tickets, non-transferable or only able to sell them for the face value. This is not a hard problem to fix, but the artists and venues are in on the scam.

So NOW they care???????????

That many people care about Taylor Swift?

Post Malone just played Staples Center here in LA. Entire section were resale. Every seat in the section of 100 seats were resale. If you put your curser on one of the seats in a section all the seats the scalpers are selling go black. You can see each scalpers sales. It's bullshit. Btw, TM has been scalping for decades.

She may be a cunt, but she's not wrong

Plus all the idiots recording the entire show on their phone. No one cares on your stupid social media.

They’ve been a scam for years for big acts. This is why I don’t even bother.

Event tickets absolutely have to be regulated. And that includes the monopoly on fees that TM charges. I’m all for the free market and the artists themselves can put down whatever price they want for their seats, but the bots buying them all up and resale sites easily just putting them back out is ridiculous.

Is Taylor performing at The Stapler Center? I'll throw a few at the scalpers.

Pearl Jam tried to fix this shit 30 years ago. I would love to see Taylor Swift fans finally defeat the monstrous Ticketmaster.

[...]

Get the K-Pop fans from TikTok on this. They will find a solution for that.

Solution: Stop attending live performances. Easy to do and financially smart.

the big acts are going to have to come together and demand change. I think that is the only way.

that was one of the big take aways from the 90s I believe. Pearl Jam said no one else would join them.

it seems as simple as issuing tickets similar to an airline ticket / non transferable.

and if resale is involved you can't charge more than the price paid.

i believe the venue and the artist are all involved in the kickback so good luck with that

R14 meet R2

[quote] Get the K-Pop fans from TikTok on this. They will find a solution for that.

They are used to shelling out lots and lots of money to support their faves so they complain less. Taylor Swift fans have been more vocal and so e have put the blame directly on her.

It's been like this for decades. Who remembers Ticketron?

Exactly. It's always been a scam. A minute to think Ticketmaster is providing a service, a lifetime to realize it's a scam and scalping. Especially with instant offloading to Stubhub, etc. It's outrageous. In a bad way.

Why can't artists sell directly? You have to have a specific contract with the venue?

R14 The big acts get a cut so they have no interest in change. All the VIP Platinum Meet and Greets pay them a ton, as they sit there looking bored and cautious to be in close proximity to the lower middle class.

Ticketmaster's "dynamic pricing" has inflated the cost of tickets to astronomical levels. If a show is in high demand, the cost explodes. Ticketmaster says this is to discourage scalpers from reselling tickets for huge prices, but it's had the opposite effect.

Artists are in on the scam. They claim they don't set the prices, but they're benefiting from it just as much as Ticketmaster is.

The whole system is a disaster.

Very few artists have enough stage presence to attend their live show, definitely not Taylor Swift.

Yes r4. Welcome to the planet Earth.

Yeah r13 stop artists from making a living from live performances. That’ll teach performers to stop performing that stuff called music. We all should sit home in silence.

R24 they don’t deserve to make a living if they are scamming their fans. Fuck them and grease fire.

.....

Have ticket buyers stand in line for hours liked they used to do. Limit purchases to 4 per person.

[Quote]the big acts are going to have to come together and demand change. I think that is the only way.

Sure, but they're in on the rip off. Organized crime as well. Fans have to stop attending live concerts to bring down all these mofos.

It's not rocket science, it's classic supply and demand.

Until demand plummets because concert goers are staying home, the price will continue to escalate dramatically.

Because most concert goers have the mental/emotional maturity of 'tween girls, don't expect prices to decrease any time soon.

What's on Amy's Spotify?

Despite how much she proclaims to care for her "Swifties", the truth is that Taylor Swift—like most of these big name acts—is a money-grubbing, dirty cunt who has amassed an army of slaves who will buy 20 different alternate cover art editions of the same album, and blackmail their parents into refinancing the family house to buy VIP tickets so they can get a snapshot with their "queen". She willing profits from this. She also has the most mentally-retarded fanbase in the world aside from Queen "Bey".

[Quote]It's not rocket science, it's classic supply and demand.

It's not classic supply and demand when the system is brought before a Congressional Committee to investigate possible corruption and other shady business practices.

Amy Klobuchar's new hairdo makes her look like Ayn Rand.

Somebody needs to create some code that hacks those gatekeeping clowns to smithereens, wherever that is. Identify the bots by software behavior and digitally nullify them

I’m not so concerned about the resellers. I generally get a decent price if it’s a huge venue like the Forum or Dodgers Stadium. What I can’t stand is the insanely inflated “fees” - I’m usually buying two tickets, and the fees always add up to the cost of a third ticket. It’s completely opaque - what the fuck are these fees for that they’re that ridiculously high?

R30 A podcast called “Staplers and Salad Combs”.

R35. The fees are for the Mob or they'll break the entertainer's legs.

.......

Thank God I've seen just about every artist I've wanted to. Mostly 70s and 80s acts. No new artist in the last 20 years has made me want to go see them live. Sadly.

its actually an auto-censor 4 poor ppl

who'd wanna rub uglies w/ non-U?

The local NBC news reported the Taylor Swift tickets were going for $30,000 EACH.

What moron would pay that much to hear her caterwaul for an hour?!

Pre-Covid I attended a lot of concerts and spent a ridiculous amount of money. But I refuse to pay those prices anymore.

It's also worth noting that one of the reasons why artists are in on the scam is because they cannot rely on record sales anymore, so they need the profits from concerts.

The only artists I would want to see in concert are Kylie Minogue, Bruce Springsteen, Destiny's Child (reunited) and Eurythmics (reunited, and I have a feeling they will).

I was hoping after their Rock n Roll Hall of Fame induction, Eurythmics would decide to go on tour. After Annie Lennox ruins Christmas again of course.

This really would be the time for Eurythmics to tour. Annie and Dave still got it but they're not getting any younger, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction is great promo for them.

I'd shell out to see ABBA reunite , but more than likely their time has passed. They're ancient. I should say that I've seen Frida a number of times around Geneva where she's lived for decades and she still looks fit and fabulous.

Congress is worried *now*? That's a laugh...

It was federal government who played large part in this current hot mess by allowing Live Nation and Ticketmaster to merge. What happened is what any serious student of mergers knew would; the new combined behemoth in marketplace does whatever it wants.

Time and time again federal government gives blessings on mergers, even to point of inserting a bewildering array of conditions meant to preserve competition and or protect consumers. Virtually every single time resulting new huge company abuses their market power.

It isn't difficult for even a high school student of economics to understand; two of something is better than one. Monopolies be they natural or government sanctioned are generally always bad for consumers.

Uh-oh! AOC is pissed off; things are going to change!

"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also chimed in to express her displeasure. “Daily reminder that Ticketmaster is a monopoly, its merger with Live Nation should never have been approved, and they need to be reined in,” the congresswoman tweeted. “Break them up.”

Good. Nuke Ticketmaster.

Taylor Swift is a pretty white rich girl who pretends to be a nice girl who hates drama and attention but is actually a calculating bitch who thrives on both and LOVES being a perpetual victim.

I wouldn't be surprised if she manufactured the whole incident. Even if she didn't, either way she's thriving on the attention she's getting from all of this.

She and Madonna are both living proof that you can be at the top of the A-List and still be starved for attention.

I’m glad you let us know she’s white because that’s an important detail that nobody knows.

Most concert venues save house seats for their employees, the seats are usually not free, the employees have to purchase them at face value.

Years ago, at Radio City, I'd always get tickets for any show I wanted to see. Radio City holds back seats within the first ten rows. A friend worked there for years, they never attended any shows, I was always offered my friend's four house seats. Tickets which aren't sold to the employees from a venue are usually released to the public the day of the show. Not sure if the public is aware of the venue holding back house seats.

At Radio City, I saw The Cure, Sting, Bryan Ferry, INXS and so many other great shows.

Today's prices for concert tickets are outrageous, the current prices are what scalped tickets cost years ago. Anyone who pays $50-$100 per ticket to see a concert, then gets to sit in the nosebleed section, is out of their fucking mind.

Many NY employers have or had special deals with RCMC, Lincoln Center and other performance spaces.

[quote]Many NY employers have or had special deals with RCMC, Lincoln Center and other performance spaces.

NY state or city employees getting deals on concert tickets has nothing to do with NYC venues holding back house seats for their own employees.

When my friend who worked at Radio City offered me his seats, all I had to do was pick up the tickets at the RC ticket window. I paid with my credit card. My friend told them I was coming to buy his house seats, he gave them my name and all I had to do was mention his name and verify who I was.

Most of the time, the tickets were always in the same row, always up close. The house seats were not the entire row across, the house seats were scattered throughout the first ten rows.

Since there are few musicians I would ever see in concert again, Sting would be the only one, then again, I don't think he's been playing at small venues these days. Add in the completely outrageous prices of concert tickets, I no longer go to concerts unless the tickets are reasonably priced or free. Or a friend has an emergency, cannot use their tickets and offers them at a good price.

Ok, let me be a bit more specific since meaning of my post seems to have eluded your comprehension.

When one said "many NY employers..." was speaking about private sector, not municipal workers.

If you want to sell tickets for $10,000 at 9:01 that's fine but don't sell tickets for $11,000 at 9:02.

Can you imagine the Karen-fest that those shows must be?

Pre-COVID, I do recall a lot of those "Diamond Package" or "VIP Packages" would just be sold as regular tickets on the day of because nobody was spending $1,000 for a chance to be somewhat close to Madonna and getting some lame poster or laminate as a gift.

I'm a little surprised there is so much demand for concerts with COVID. I thought people would not want to be squished in with others like sardines. Plus the prices.

[quote]Ok, let me be a bit more specific since meaning of my post seems to have eluded your comprehension. When one said "many NY employers..." was speaking about private sector, not municipal workers.

No reason for ONE to be rude, I completely comprehended your dumbass link. I was simply making a POINT that many venues hold back tickets for their employees.

Lots of companies in NYC have special perks for their employees, many get discounts from various brands. A teacher friend moved upstate, their union gets them reduced rates on their Spectrum service, they pay next to nothing for cable, internet and telephone.

And, yes dear, NY city and state workers get perks beyond your comprehension, much more than discounted concert tickets. Cops take the drugs and cash they confiscate, as well as tons of confiscated stolen luxury brands items. It's much worse than what you see on 'Law & Order'.

I worked with a woman married to a detective, every week she had a new high end leather bag. She'd tell me with a wink, "My husband got this and you know WHERE! Then, she winked again and laughed. "Is there anything you want, something for gift? He can get it."

because it's a free for all now! fools are spending their last penny on up front Lizzo tickets! 2023 is going to hit people hard. I hope the dumbasses who are spending thousands of dumb tickets are homeless soon.

[quote]Can you imagine the Karen-fest that those shows must be?

Aren't Taylor Swish fans mostly tweens, teens and young women in their 20s? Have those age groups entered Karen Territory yet?

R60 No, but their moms have.

WTF? Taylor Swish fans attend her concerts with their moms? When I was a teen I never attended one concert with my parents. Times sure have changed.

It's hard to believe that there was a time when a ticket to a major live concert was only a bit more expensive than going out to dinner or seeing a movie and takeaway. I saw Madonna in 1993 and it cost $36. I didn't even have to book. We just showed up and asked for some cheap seats.

In Southern CA, some shows are only sold by Ticketmaster and then other shows are sold by AXS, Vivid Seats or StubHub. The prices are still too damn high. They don’t compete, they collude and seem to mark their territory of which shows belong to who. Years ago, we bought tickets directly from the theatre. This crap about buying from Ticketmaster or AXS is BS. There need to be laws in place.

The Feds don’t really protect the consumer. Anti-Trust laws are a joke.

R46, Please study the use of the article "the."

[quote]It's also worth noting that one of the reasons why artists are in on the scam is because they cannot rely on record sales anymore, so they need the profits from concerts.

A sad fact.

[quote]The Feds don’t really protect the consumer. Anti-Trust laws are a joke.

Didn't trump disband the consumer watchdog group Elizabeth Warren headed?

Vivid and Stubhub are scalpers r64. You do know that? God damn Americans are the dumbest cunts ever!!!!!!

........

[quote]Didn't trump disband the consumer watchdog group Elizabeth Warren headed?

What joke that the so-called "law & order president," that orange motherfucker, is basically a Mafia don who is still trying to destroy democracy. He lies about everything. Take away from the poor and middle class and give more to the rich. Robin Hood in reverse.

Everything that freak claimed to care about, he was trying to destroy, anyone who believed that fug carnival barker got what they deserved.

Now this evil bastard is literally inviting white nationalists and anti-semites to his home, while claiming he had no idea who they were. Wonder what Dracula Jared thinks about this situation.

Who gives a fuck about concert tickets?

The middle class has been eaten alive, and the planet’s dying around us, and half this country wants to gas-chamber those of us who aren’t wearing white hoods or red hats, and people can’t afford rent or pills or food.

But sure, Amy. Let’s have a big fucking inquisition into the overpriced tickets that some white cunt had to buy for her girls’ night at the Honda Center.

No wonder this country’s fucked.

r71 you are part of the problem but you knew that.

R72 What problem? That the assholes who have the time, money, and inclination to go see Sting or Trailer Swift pack an arena might incidentally be overpaying for this nonsense?

Who gives a fuck if they are? Real people out there have real problems, and this noise ain’t one of them. Concerts are too pricey? Fuck it. Don’t go. You’ll survive.

Fuel is too expensive. Education is too expensive. Housing is too expensive. Getting old is too expensive. This shit matters. Concert ticket prices do not matter.

Streaming must have really gutted record sales, which is how most artists made their money for a while. That's how you were able to see arena bands like The Who and Led Zepplin for $10 in the 70s. With inflation as a factor, it should be around $56 today for a band or artist of that popularity level. Now it's hundreds of thousands.

I remember watching a video about Kurt Cobain being shocked Madonna, one of the biggest pop stars in the world at the time, charged $75 for tickets.

r71 r73 Exactly everything you said! This cunt has nothing better to do with her time than worry about overpriced Taylor Swift tickets?

R75 Just be glad she’s not hurling staplers in the Oval Office if this is how she prioritizes issues.

r73 you claim this is rich people problems but it is EXACTLY what you are bitching about. Concerts should have never been this expensive but you call it a rich person problem. This was what real people DID.

Repigs, Corperations, the 1% and Wall Street DID THIS. Where have you been the last 20 years?

r77 She underpriced her tickets so over a billion people tried to buy them and the website crashed. It's not some huge conspiracy theory.

Only the ticket purchaser whose name is on the ticket should be admitted with a select amount of tickets they purchased for friends - they’ve been doing this in Europe for years.

The biggest thing driving up the price of tickets is actually zoning regulations which are almost 100% the fault of liberals. Manhattan has one stadium that has to be rationed between a pro hockey team, a NBA team, pro boxing, a WNBA, college sports and every touring musician. We could easily build 10 more stadiums all over the city and drive done prices but NIMBYs have blocked all new construction.

The only way to get past outrageous ticket prices, scalpers and so-called 'legit-resellers is to print the buyer's name on the tickets. As R79 said, print the buyer's name on the tickets and the amount of tickets they purchased for a specific gig.

A few years ago, Cat Stevens performed in NYC, tickets were extremely difficult to get. Only the people who purchased the tickets were allowed in, not sure how it was done, but no tickets were scalped. No photos were allowed either, cells were confiscated.

There are definitely ways to get around this ticket situation, but since there are millions of dollars being made, why correct the corruption? It seems so many are getting a piece of this action, not just the performers.

An older relative told me about the days of seeing rock concerts in Central Park for $2.50, he showed me his collection of ticket stubs he's saved over the years. What amazing shows he attended. He also saw shows at the Fillmore East, the Academy of Music which later became The Palladium. Not to mention many great shows at smaller venues during the punk rock and New Wave era.

My relative started going to rock concerts at around 14, that was in the early 1970s.

The famous bands he saw for low prices was mind-boggling: everyone from Led Zeppelin (that ticket was $5.00! He was a huge Zeppelin fan, he saw every NYC concert by them, fro the Fillmore to MSG) on to the late 1970s where he saw The Police for $7.50. He was also a huge Police fan.

The most shocking aspect, all these low priced seats were close up. My relative rarely bought from scalpers and when he did, IIRC, he bought a few scalped tickets in the 1990s, he paid around $50 to see The Police at Madison Square Garden, that ticket was 4th row center. $50 for a MSG concert ticket these days would likely be for the upper tiers of MSG!

How about the musicians themselves put an end to these ridiculously priced tickets? Seems even the super rich musicians are so damn greedy, why would they care.

I remember Eddie Vedder tried to do something, but that fell through.

[quote] Vivid and Stubhub are scalpers [R64]. You do know that? God damn Americans are the dumbest cunts ever!!!!!!

Who the fuck are you and where do you live? Vivid and Stubhub are now like Ticketmaster, handing ticket sales for the music venues. I tried to buy directly from the music theatre on their website but you can't; Vivid Seats still handled the purchase on their website. And you cannot go to the box office in person.

You don't know shit, asshole.

I checked on Depeche Mode tickets tonight for their MSG show. Floor tickets are several thousand dollars while nosebleed seats start at $400.

No thanks.

[Quote] Who the fuck are you and where do you live? Vivid and Stubhub are now like Ticketmaster, handing ticket sales for the music venues. I tried to buy directly from the music theatre on their website but you can't

I'm clearly the guy who knows more than you do and we live live in the same city.

From Wiki,

[Quote] From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vivid Seats Inc. is an American ticket exchange and resale company.

If you're buying from them and you claim there's no other outlet then you haven't tried hard enough, hon.

I get it. It's hard for you to stand upright, r82. DUH!

The sound in indoor arenas is very good and in good venues, even nosebleeds are great. The music and sound is amazing pretty much every where. You just can't see them up close. If you're a fan of the music, it shouldn't bother you. Most of the acts have video screens and you can see the act from those big screens. There is a certain energy when you see the live performance, very exciting and good.

But I find that in outdoor stadiums, you have to be upfront to get a good sound.

I've sat everywhere in concerts. I prefer indoors.

R83, I am going to that Depeche Mode concert! I had a hard time getting the tickets I wanted, every time I picked the seats I wanted, the message says, oh no, someone else picked those seats first etc etc. happened so many times. I ended up buying side of the stage. Unless you are tall, you have to see Depeche Mode from an elevated view, the lead singer is short so unless you are right in the front you won't see much of him.

COVID aside, I no longer go to shows for the same reason I almost never go to the movies or to live theater.

As much as I appreciate the experience of seeing someone live, most patrons are ignorant assholes. It's the worst with music concerts, because I inevitably get stuck behind someone who is doing any one of a number of things - talking, usually. Filming the show while talking. Doing any and everything they can under the sun EXCEPT FOR shutting the fuck up and watching the show. The last concert I went to had three of the dumbest women I've ever met dancing like demented penguins all night while selfie-ing themselves so that their 5 Facebook Live viewers could watch cellulite in motion.

A theatrical experience for a movie is only slightly less terrible. Theatre can be the least intrusive but I don't want to spend $200 or more for that experience.

I used to like small shows, which usually had less of that energy, but now even they are filled with assholes.

As Ouiser said in Steel Magnolias, I can nap at home for free.

And yes, Ticketmaster, LiveNation and all of those things are total scams. It's no longer a fair system to let fans see their favorite bands. A classic case of extreme capitalism where every break and every loophole is given to ticket agencies and scalpers who charge anywhere from 4x to 100x a ticket price.

I've had a lucky run of seeing some great concerts. I think I'll let it go at that.

What r87 said!

This has Taylor’s team all over this! She is going for Madonna’s concert crown. She wants her tour to be in the news. She got her wish. Now, Taylor and Madonna will be forever the touring Queens in the public’s eyes- Madonna because she is and everyone knows it, Taylor because she may take Madonna’s crown and wants everyone to think that is her only female touring peer.

I've been to concerts and b'way shows post covid. I didn't get anything. I wore a mask most of the time.

r87 is spot-on. People have ruined concert, movie and theatre-going experiences. Late, rude, obnoxious, treating venues like their living rooms and/or bathrooms. I would rather stay at home and watch the DVD.

I've never understood cunts who go to concerts and scream talk the entire show! They all deserve cancer!

A lot of parents bring their kids to rock concerts. I've seen so many. Red hot chili peppers, Iron Maiden, the who, pink floyd etc etc

Parents bring their kids because they don't want to go alone or been seen as someone who goes to concerts ALONE. Dragging their kids most of the time is about the loser parents which most who do this ARE.

[quote]Most of the acts have video screens and you can see the act from those big screens.

Why pay hundreds, or thousands, to see a live band on large screens. This is enjoyable?

My days of seeing live music are over. I'll go to a concert if a friend knows the band and scores free tickets or if someone I know wants me to shoot their gig (I'm a photographer), but I sure won't pay those outrageous prices to see any concert.

I'm glad to have caught most of the musicians I enjoyed in concert years ago. I saw some very famous bands at much smaller venues than Madison Square Garden and at stadiums. I saw these bands before the height of their fame, when they were still performing at small venues.

Many of the concerts were at clubs such as the Bottom Line, the Ritz (now Webster Hall) and other small to average sized NYC concert halls, such as Irving Plaza. I attended some amazing live gigs at The Ritz, bands such as the Pretenders, the Jam, Prince, The Police, Squeeze, The Specials, Yaz and so many others. I also saw The Clash at a small club.

I saw musicians like Chris Isaak perform at the Mudd Club, I saw the B-52s, Blondie and so many others at small clubs. Those days are long over. I was lucky to experience and be part of so much pop and rock music history.

I sure don't envy today's young music fans, especially the ridiculous prices they have to pay just to attend a concert.

This scalping and scamming's been happening for decades, but only now that it's effecting Taylor Swift's reputation the media gives a fuck. BTS just had Ticketmaster cancel their general onsale for the same bullshit last year, Paramore had people's seats disappearing in their cart and reappearing for 2x the price. It's not okay, but it should have been addressed long ago.

Taylor isn't doing shit. Scalpers know her tickets will sell for high prices BECAUSE parents will be buying them! YES even 20something women have their parents buying everything for them. FACT!

[R87] Spot on. I've noticed that post-Covid people lack all sense of social norms from before. People openly disregard others by talking in movie theaters, Broadway shows, pushing past each other in grocery stores, just lacking all personal space and common decency. My last concert was in 2019 where security escorted out 3 teenage girls for standing on their seats in the floor section of a stadium and cussing everyone out that told them to get off or get pulled off. I imagine it's 1000x that by now with no consequences.

The prices for any live performances are insane these days. I'm taking visitors to Portland around Christmas and I found a holiday show, can't even remember what it is, but is was 91.00 for an adult...I'm not doing it, I feel poor, but holy crap that's insane.

Just bought a TM ticket. Base cost = $89.50. Total cost = $112.50.

What are you seeing r100? Concert?

My two Elton John tickets were almost $700. And they weren’t even that close to the stage.

Yes, r101. I'm a major Four Tops fan, and I will see them as long as one original member ( Duke Fakir) is still with them.

Fun r103!

R102 Can't you see a bloated corpse for less than that just by hanging around a Gulf Coast cemetery after a hurricane?

[quote] I'm a little surprised there is so much demand for concerts with COVID. I thought people would not want to be squished in with others like sardines. Plus the prices.

The demand is really for artists whose audiences are younger demographics. I'd be interested to hear how legacy acts that appeal to Gen-Xers and older are doing. I would think between Covid and the economic downturn demand in that demographic would be down.

[quote] [R72] What problem? That the assholes who have the time, money, and inclination to go see Sting or Trailer Swift pack an arena might incidentally be overpaying for this nonsense?

"Trailer Swift"?! Epic! Was that purposeful or a DL auto-correct? Let's make "Trailer Swift" happen.

R107 No mistake. And I've heard her called that a few times over the years. Not sure why, though. She was raised with money, wasn't she?

But money doesn't buy talent or class, nosiree!

[quote]I used to like small shows, which usually had less of that energy, but now even they are filled with assholes.

Jakob Dylan actually stopped a Wallflowers show last year to tell some fans that they were being assholes by loudly ridiculing another fan in the audience that he was trying to talk to. They got even louder in response.

Who the fuck pays ridiculous prices (even in small venues) for a show and then disrupts it so they can't hear the band?

Mainstream crap American music. If you like that shit, you deserve to be scammed.

R110 is uppity and refined.

i like going to concerts, there is just a certain energy and vibe that you can't get listening to songs at home. Plus many times, they play longer, extended versions of songs not available on the album.

R111 Only if you pronounce it "REE-fined!"

..........

Those “platinum” tickets are the artist and venue basically pre-scalping them. A thousand bucks for tier 2? Fuck off, crooks!

It doesn't "NEED" to be reformed, or broken with government intervention. It doesn't rise to the urgency of requiring state regulation. People aren't being physically or materially harmed by this, nor is a vital human need being suppressed or withheld. They're fucking concert tickets, not cancer meds.

You, the consumer, need to use your power to make your voice heard. Stop buying from Ticketmaster. Stop going to overpriced concerts. No one "needs" to see a concert live, and you can do without one or two if it proves your point.

Fix it yourselves, and leave the government out of it.

No more concerts for me.

[quote]now that it's effecting Taylor Swift's reputation

Oh, dear!

It’s cheaper to fly Round Trip to Puerto Rico than to go see that cunt Beyoncé.

R119 Consider what her average fan could do with that amount of money in their life. But instead they'll squander it on concert tickets and go right back to bitching about being broke all the time.

R120 “the yt MAN done it to me. He done broke me!”

No, Bitch. Beyoncé did!

Mafia don James Dolan is the one person who singlehandedly keeps politicians on his payroll so no other stadiums will ever be built in NYC. He's a greedy pig.

Yassss Kweens who act like it’s their civic duty to go to Beyoncé are giving off red flags. Hint: they’re high maintenance, delusional and insane

Nothing will change unless people stop going to concerts - the entire industry statistically takes a sharp nosedive for an extended period (of course there will always be some concerts that don't sell well).

Concerts are a discretionary income purchase; it's not like people are being priced out of something they need to live. So I just don't see the impetus from anybody who's benefiting to stop the scam. OP says it's as bad as flying, but people continue to fly - and complain - and then fly again. But, yeah, it sucks.

R122 Mr. D has skeletons out the ass

[quote]OP says it's as bad as flying, but people continue to fly - and complain - and then fly again.

A lot of times people can’t avoid flying (family emergency, family gatherings, jobs, etc.) but everyone can definitely not go to a concert.

I quit going to live concerts when the ticket price became the same as a down payment on a decent condo. No one is worth that amount of cash, NO one. Until people proclaim in unison, NO MORE, WE QUIT, this consumer rape will not end.

As a big music fan I've been going to concerts regularly my entire adult life.Fortunately most of the shows I want to see are by smaller lesser known acts, so getting tickets for clubs and small venues are less of a problem. But try to get tickets to shows by more popular acts in larger venues is an exercise in futility. For instance Springsteen on Broadway had over 100 shows during the course of a year and I was unable to land any tickets, and I certainly was not going to pay over $1,500 from scalpers, which they call "resellers" today.

This struck me as a pretty shitty comment from a multi-millionaire on the extortionate price of his tour tickets.

“I know it was unpopular with some fans,” Springsteen told Rolling Stone late last year, in his only remarks to date on the controversy. “But if there’s any complaints on the way out, you can have your money back.”

R129 he’s worth $650M

It serves them right for spending hundreds on Taylor Swift.

Are the performers in on this grift? If yes, how do they manage to get away with it?

R132 yes, they make money off those platinum tickets up charges, and they also take blocks of the front few rows and throw them on StubHub then 5-10x them.

They get away with it because it’s not illegal

I'm pretty much in the same situation as R128. I love live music, but most the acts I see and venues I go to aren't THAT crazy in termns of price. I don't think I've seen a mega-popular current act (or legacy act like Springsteen) where the tickets are going to be crazy. I did see Prince in the 2000s at United Center in Chicago and the tickets were pricey, but not bad. The seats were good, if not great - which I'm usually fine with. In a big stadium, I'm never going to buy the nosebleed cheapest. But I'm fine at the half-way up, half-way back "medium" seats. I did once buy nosebleed "cheap" seats to see the Rolling Stones, basically to check that box off. It was exactly what I expected - I watched most the concert on the screen, but it was fun to be there for the collective experience and vibe. This week I'm going to check to see what the prices are like for Jill Scott's tour celebrating the anniversary of her first album.

R129 The problem isn't the performance, it's the outrageous price of the tickets, and the inability to even get tickets at the initially listed price. Paying 3-10 times the initial price is absurd for any event.

The underlying issue is the precipitous decline in sales of 3-D forms of recorded music. Touring is now not an adjunct to a performer's/band's earnings; it is the main source of income.

Ticketmaster needs to be overhauled but as long as people continue paying these prices and supporting dynamic pricing, this will continue.

I sense that people going to concerts and being able to afford these ridiculously expensive tickets is the new status symbol. If you can afford it, you are seen as wealthy. Or people going into debt to afford shows to make themselves look like they can afford it. It's ridiculous.

Hiring a magat for public relations makes me laugh.

Who cares? It’s not like going to see Nicki Minaj is as necessary as food, heating oil, electricity, or train fare to work.

Is seeing Adele in concert a basic human right?

If there are idiots who’ll pay a thousand dollars to see some hip hop star in concert, let them throw their money away.

I shouldn't have to pay exorbitant concert ticket prices to offset people paying a pittance for getting the music for a pittance in digital format.

have you attended a concert in the digital age? So sad. People with their mobile phones up.

If fans are stupid enough to pay hundreds, or thousands, just for the pleasure of seeing a multimillionaire performer for one to two hours, they are getting what they deserve. I've got better things to do with my money.

Boycott concerts and the outrageous ticket services.

I just checked tickets for Kenny Chesney in my mid-sized flyover city. I don't want to see him, he's just the biggest name coming in the next few months. Through Ticketmaster, prices ranged from $229 for the farthest nosebleed seats to $1,002 for the front row. Absolutely insane.

Let’s play a game. Let’s assume selling hand jobs is legal.

If I put up a sign saying I’ll sell a hand job for a million dollars, should there be a law prohibiting me from doing so?

If a middleman comes along and buys up my handjob time, thrb charges two million, should there be a law prohibiting that? The Freedom to Buy a Handjob Direct Act of 2023?

While we’re at it, can we also pass a law capping the price of Gomes in Malibu at $100,000?

^^^ homes lol

My phone just changed it to Gomes AGAIN and I had to manually correct it.

On CBS Sunday morning today

Like purchasing flights- only more expensive.

Honestly guys, I never thought I would buy nosebleeds either but if it's an indoor arena, the sound is very good no matter where you are esp if it's a world class arena.

I have seen many acts from nosebleeds at MSG because the tix I want were always sold out and I was actually quite surprised that it wasn't bad. the sound was very good.

as for stadiums, I think that's totally different and you don't get good sound.

On a healthcare thread someone called the health insurance companies parasites. The health insurance companies, like ticket master, only exist as a middle man to jack up the prices. We need to get rid of these parasitical companies and industries.

R148 I would not spend good money on nosebleed seats at MSG. Regardless of the decent sound, the view of the act is too far to enjoy.

So, r140, musicians/singers should create and perform only for wages you deem appropriate and/or affordable for yourself?

Your argument goes off the proverbial rails when you write "I shouldn't have to...," for you need not do anything. You can simply not go to this, that, or the other concert. Neither side of the proposition is a human right, the artist to an audience nor the potential audience to a ticket.

But one apparently must remind some that the US, at least, is a Capitalist economy where many costs are what the market---aka, you---will bear.

Addendum: And Amy Klobuchar can just stop in her tracks if she thinks stage performance ticketing is the industry that government should regulate, when paintings, e.g., can go at auctions for multi-millions. When Super-Bowl tickets can cost multiple thousands, along with the big-screen televisions upon which to watch the game. When apartments and housing costs can soar without government intervention.

Now, if one would like to debate the need for Capitalism, okay!

R152 people don’t go sit inside a painting. Museums are decently priced now.

R153, Fine, focus on one tree. Try the forest.

Artists aren't factories turning out automobiles. They aren't providing public utilities such as electricity and sewerage disposal. They aren't part of our national defense.

What they offer us is entertainment for our senses. Should concert tickets be government-regulated? Should restaurant meals?

Or, r153, should they be government-(aka, tax monies)-subsidized, as national parks and many museums are?

As for Ticketmaster's almost-monopoly (not every venue or artist uses it), I've spent many an early hour in lines at Box Offices for tickets, skipping TM and its fees.

This current discussion came about because Taylor Swift's management didn't....manage. There could have been more staggering of sales days---for different groups (fan clubs, venue insiders clubs, in-person buyers, Internet-only purchasers, certain credit-card holders); different cities; and different venue rows, with different perks per section. All of this is de rigeuer.

If NYC can't be bought the same day as Philly or Newark, the less chance of a TM tie-up and melt-down.

Get ready for more complaints, this time with movie theaters!

The movie theaters seating sort of makes sense - they do it at nearly all venues where people pay to gather - for concerts and theater and sporting events, etc. Though theaters are pretty small so a wide gap in prices would be odd. I'm interested to see what AMC thinks are the "best" seats. People vary in their preferences.

R155 I was a regular movie goer for decades. I've returned partially since 2022. If they start charging more based on seat location, they can kiss my ass goodbye. And they will also put a nail in coffin of in-person movie going.

There's a fraw in the pran:

People move around in movie theatres, unlike in plays and concerts with specific seating tickets.

Unless AMC plans also to hire security/ushers to do nothing but watch audiences like hawks.

Oh, r157, you know that Regal and Cinemark are gleeful!

R158 exactly I’ve been to one full movie in the last 5 years, all the rest were 25% capacity

[Quote] unlike in plays and concerts with specific seating tickets.

You haven't been to a play or concert in the last 15 years have you?

Fools never sit in their seats they bought at concert ALL THE TIME!

concert is not the only scam

i saw an entree at my fav viet restaurant being $16.79 in texas,

R161, WTH? Are you arguing that neither plays nor concerts have Section, Row, and Seat # on their tickets? ARE YOU?!

Because I not only was at a concert last Friday; I've purchased 5 other TM tickets in the past month (American Music Theater, PA; Penn's Peak, PA; Wind Creek Event Center, PA), for, among the others, Elvis Costello. Yeah, no GA.

R162, Trust me; BT, DT. My attitude is "Stop me if you can." However, that pretty much depends on if there's GA; if the seating is sold out or not; or if in general the floor attendees are standing even though they have assigned seats.

Do either of you want a ticket to see Jessica Chastain in "A Doll's House"?

Pick a date, any date. Click on it. See the specific seating map. For a play.

I realize it was a long time ago, but when I was in high school I saw Elton John, Paul McCartney & Wings, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (with surprise guest Stevie Nicks, Liza, Linda Ronstadt, and others and never paid more than $15 for any of the tickets!

The minimum wage was about $3/hr, so this represented 5x the minimum wage which any young person could easily afford. Even assuming a $15/hr minimum wage, a ticket would be in $75 range, which is a fraction of what they charge these days. What a rip-off. I'm glad the federal government is getting involved and will hopefully ruin the disgusting grift!

[quote] Trust me; BT, DT. My attitude is "Stop me if you can." However, that pretty much depends on if there's GA;

We need a decoder ring for this post.

When they resell them for a higher number do the band guys get a higher percentage because I'm thinking 'not' being that it's like a book sold on Ebay after it's been purchased at the original price. If so he concert artists getting cheated here.

r164, do you normally freak out at the drop of a hat? My point was people seat hop all the time at theatre and concerts. They never sit in the seat they actually purchased. That's all.

..............

I hate those cunts. they buy cheap seats and then try to move up and they will try to stand next to you.

I always buy aisle seats and these cheap cunts will try to move from wherever the fuck they were and then clog up the aisle. I always tell them to fuck off. Or I call the security/usher.

r172 and they're always shit faced!

R169, You're wrong, about Broadway at least. Have you ever been? The adults there do not "seat hop."

Moreover, I have rarely witnessed such antics at concerts (though I moved thrice in an MSG Ricky Martin show back in the day, twice told by Security to go back to my seat, the third time with the added "or you will have to leave").

But then, maybe you go to such poorly-attended events that the empty seats abound for the taking.

Oh, and r169? You need some reading comprehension lessons if you judge the tone of my r164 to be "freak[ing] out."

Madonna is shitting bricks.

r176, when you capitalize all letters in words you are yelling. Take you're own advice, hon. Sheeeeesh.

[quote] Take you're own advice, hon.

Oh, DEAR!

[quote] though I moved thrice

Oh who the hell says thrice?

R171 I had three drunk sorority sluts do that to me at a concert, they were wearing those stupid big fall apple picking hats and stood the whole time, screeching and holding their white claws up. I moved in front of them which seats were luckily empty and gave them a dirty look that I hope gave them cunt cancer. There is no more entitled cunt than a drunk white sorority girl.

[quote] and gave them a dirty look that I hope gave them cunt cancer.

I am so in lust with you right now!

Oooh, lawdy, I need a cigarette.

[Quote] There is no more entitled cunt than a drunk white sorority girl.

Unless they are drunk 50something old cunts acting like they are 25 yo.

R165: No thank you. I don’t want to waste my time and money on that overrated, woke misandrist cunt.

R184, You missed my point, which was only about a ticket's specific seating, not about actually attending (it was chosen randomly).

AXS did this to me today. Within 60 seconds of the same starting, all tix were gone? Sure. Then, poof, they we’re suddenly all available at Stub Hub at 3-5 times the price. All of the tickets. Not even single seats were available.

It’s ALL a scam.

I work in the ticket industry but in the venue side of it. Here’s a little info…

While Ticketmaster isn’t perfect, they have nothing to do with price setting. That’s the promoter/ agent, possibly even artist. But mostly promoter. They utilize dynamic pricing and basically change the price (mostly raise) depending on demand. If a shows selling well during a presale, prices will jump. They also choose the prices for Platinum seats. All comes from promoter. Also sometimes they sneak in a bump on the service charge to net them or artist more money. They request $2 bump per ticket that is tacked on to service charges. You won’t see this fee broken down in your cart though, it’s hidden.

Tip for getting tickets for a sold out show- wait until day of show and check as they often release seats once the sightline has been established after stage and front of house has been set.

Again Ticketmaster isn’t innocent and while fees are high, high prices are coming from promoter. Also have you tried any other ticketing platforms to buy tickets ie Axs, tickets.com, etc.? They suck.

I agree with others: name is on the ticket and is transferable but can only be resold at the same price. Service fees removed altogether.

Back in the day I bought Metallica tickets by standing in line. They were $40 each with no hidden fees, still a fair amount in the late 90s, but not expensive compared to today.

A few people in my local Nextdoor were selling Taylor swift tickets last month for $750 a piece. They weren’t even good seats, but nosebleed seats. My guess is they somehow managed to score tickets and just wanted to make a quick buck (or $1000), which I’m sure they did because several people said they wanted them. No one should pay that much for shitty seats at a stadium.

More government regulation would fix this right away.

when you resell tickets you are taxed as income, no?

R189 none of those crooks report their scalp profits

r190, how can it not be? TM/Livenation literally have ticket accounts hooked up to report to the IRS how much you are selling tickets for. They ask for your tax id or SS # over $500.00 total sales on your account?

this is why I mainly only go to classical music concerts

Oh, an aristocrat!

i just bought the cure tickets and they are good to their fans.

THE CURE HAVE AGREED ALL TICKET PRICES, AND APART FROM A FEW HOLLYWOOD BOWL CHARITY SEATS, THERE WILL BE NO ‘PLATINUM’ OR ‘DYNAMICALLY PRICED’ TICKETS ON THIS TOUR

Just don't buy tickets. You can listen to the same songs in high-quality recordings. Concert acoustics are usually horrible.

Stop buying from scalpers aka for moron Americans "resellers" and the scalper industry goes away.

Simple but Americans are dumb so I expect scalpers will continue forever.