Withholding Tickets

[rszdtrvl]

It's just my opinion. You don't need to agree.

 

[sasywtch]

The one fan club that I belong to (Barry Manilow) (I hang my head in shame) does not get tickets solely in the front. They are usually scattered among the first 20 rows. You do get to buy tickets before they go on sale to the general public, but it's not a guarantee. Also, fan clubs don't get access to all the tickets in the venue.

But it's better than nothing!

No need to hang your head in shame. I was a member when there was only one person running it in West Covina. I did get very good tix for his show in Alabama. I can't for the life of me remember the names of the people I sat with and talked to all the time on the Barry boards. Barbara from TN I think.

Anyway, I haven't been to a concert in years as I don't want to pay 200 a tix.

 

[OhMari]

No need to hang your head in shame. I was a member when there was only one person running it in West Covina. I did get very good tix for his show in Alabama. I can't for the life of me remember the names of the people I sat with and talked to all the time on the Barry boards. Barbara from TN I think.

Anyway, I haven't been to a concert in years as I don't want to pay 200 a tix.

Me too. When we got married we used to go to concerts a few times a year and after awhile we wised up and couldn't understand how horrible bands sounded playing their own music, there were maybe a few exceptions, like Barry Manilow and Charlie Daniels.

Now you get the prerecorded music, with the artist singing along. I remember Lady Gaga bragging how she sings at her concerts and you can hear the song she was singing with still playing. Everyone started booing her because they all realized she was full of ****.

 

[zoemurr]

No shame in being a Fanilow! He is one of the few performers I've always wanted to see but haven't. Mainly because I can never find anyone who wants to go.

I joined and have always been able to get great seats through the fan club. (First 5 rows) They are $$ though. He often does have very affordable seats ($10 I think) in the back section.

I started going to Barry shows when I was about 8 'cause my mom couldn't find anyone to go with her. One time my dad drove us about 3 hours to see a show. I specifically remember him saying, "I'll sit here.. but there is no way I'm going to clap for this guy."

I'm 40+ now and have been to about 15 shows in 5 states and I took my DD with me when she was 10.. so also hanging my head.. The last time I didn't think was nearly as good. He's definitely starting to show his age.

 

[Micca]

RadioNate and RockandRollBallerina make salient points here. Like virtually every business, the concert biz has become a big, sophisticated revenue generating machine. We'd like to think of ourselves as "fans", but in reality we're customers as are the ticket brokers, the corporate sponsors, local media, etc. I sure do understand the frustration though. Kinda makes you want to stay home and wait for the dvd or live album that will be inexpensive and hassle-free to purchase.

 

[ckay87]

I don't attend many concerts but I think it is ridiculous.

Immediately after tickets go on sale they are sold out, but available for a higher price on Stub Hub, Ebay, etc. I am willing to bet a lot of the "special group" tickets are found on those type of sites.

(I also think that musicians should undergo mandatory drug testing before a concert and if any illegal substances are found in their blood stream prior to concerts that the concert be cancelled and all tickets refunded. That is just me though.)

How on earth would you justify this?? I'm not going to tell you that I think drugs are okay. But I DO go to a lot of concerts (cheap ones) and I can tell you that whether or not an artist was on drugs had never been a question for me. If any have been (as I'm sure they have) it has not even remotely affected me, nor has it occurred to me to wonder.

 

[freckles04]

I don't go to many concerts (no one I like ever seems to come anywhere close) so imagine my surprise when one of my favorites (Dave Matthews Band) came to a venue about an hour away. I was online at the exact moment the sale opened, clicked the button and got LAWN seats. I was so bummed. I knew there was a presale for some kind of credit card holders but I didn't think EVERY seat would already be sold out by the first minute of the sale. Of course, it rained that night, was muddy, and the venue had no speakers that far back so we could hardly hear anything. Not to mention, they sold WAY too many lawn tickets. It was like sardines in a can. A very muddy can. Huge bummer!

 

[elaine amj]

If you think about it, the practice makes sense.

Concert prices have gone through the roof! How else can one justify $200/ticket + fees to see a major artist if there isn't a "demand" for the ticket. It would look horrible for 12,000 seats to go on sale to Beiber and then only sell 1000 that first day. No kid wants to go see a "hot" artist who is now no longer cool...

So you sell your tickets at a high price, "sell out" quickly, and the buyer feels they have a great deal. And afterwards, when they release additional seats, people feel they "scored" tickets to a "sold out" concert.

Too true.

I wanted to take my DD to a Taylor Swift concert this year and missed the presale and the sale (had watched out for a concert announcement for several months and just hadn't checked for 1-2 months). Tickets on Stubhub were absolutely crazy. I almost did it though but kept holding out. Three days before the concert, they finally released more tickets on Ticketmaster and I picked up floor seats at regular price (which was insane, but half what Stubhub sellers wanted!). The next day, they release standing tickets even cheaper and I kicked myself for not waiting. That said, at the concert, I was very glad to have seats

 

[HelenePA]

No need to hang your head in shame. I was a member when there was only one person running it in West Covina. I did get very good tix for his show in Alabama. I can't for the life of me remember the names of the people I sat with and talked to all the time on the Barry boards. Barbara from TN I think.

Anyway, I haven't been to a concert in years as I don't want to pay 200 a tix.

Not all concerts are 200$ a piece! I'm going to a music festival in Hershey in a few weeks and got tix for 17.50$ a piece thru a link from a social coupon page!Are they front row tix? nope (this will be my first non front row concert since 2000 but I couldn't justify the cost this time around) I'll be seeing Train, The Script, OneRepublic, Hanson (lol) and a few others for 17.50!!! I'll be taking my dd10 with me.

 

[ilovefh]

Lately I only go to one type of concert....New Kids on the Block. I don't mind how they do tickets.

They hold a percentage for VIP and presales and such. But what doesn't sell they release back to ticketmaster. The last show I ended up with second row 3 days before the show and my next show in July I also got second row a few days ago. Actually we're a group if 6 and we all got second row.

And tickets are $100 for good seats. I could sit way up there for much less but I'm spoiled and like to be close to the action!

 

[Stitchfans]

I don't attend many concerts but I think it is ridiculous.

Immediately after tickets go on sale they are sold out, but available for a higher price on Stub Hub, Ebay, etc. I am willing to bet a lot of the "special group" tickets are found on those type of sites.

(I also think that musicians should undergo mandatory drug testing before a concert and if any illegal substances are found in their blood stream prior to concerts that the concert be cancelled and all tickets refunded. That is just me though.)

I heard that Stub Hub is scalpers. They bought out nearly all the tickets to several concerts DD18 wanted to go to. Then sold the tickets for twice the price or more. They even did so for the benefit concert in Oklahoma recently. It is a shame that something can not be done about places like that.

To be noted.... I did not read on after this post if I am repeating someone sorry.

 

[HelenePA]

I heard that Stub Hub is scalpers. They bought out nearly all the tickets to several concerts DD18 wanted to go to. Then sold the tickets for twice the price or more. They even did so for the benefit concert in Oklahoma recently. It is a shame that something can not be done about places like that.

To be noted.... I did not read on after this post if I am repeating someone sorry.

Stubhub is individuals with tix they bought who want to resell them.. the people set the price not stubhub.. I'm sure stubhub gets a cut (Not sure how much) but I bought Lady Antebellum tix on there for a LOT more than face value but it was well worth it

 

[ilovefh]

I heard that Stub Hub is scalpers. They bought out nearly all the tickets to several concerts DD18 wanted to go to. Then sold the tickets for twice the price or more. They even did so for the benefit concert in Oklahoma recently. It is a shame that something can not be done about places like that.

To be noted.... I did not read on after this post if I am repeating someone sorry.

Stubhub is individuals with tix they bought who want to resell them.. the people set the price not stubhub.. I'm sure stubhub gets a cut (Not sure how much) but I bought Lady Antebellum tix on there for a LOT more than face value but it was well worth it

I'm sure there are some scalpers on there because sometimes ticket prices on stubhub are OUTRAGEOUS! But I think mostly it is like HelenePA saidm individuals trying to resell them.

I bought tickets to a show and then a month later I found tickets in the second row on ticketmaster. I bought the second row tickets and sold my others on stubhub. I think the fee was 15%. Steep, but I needed to sell them.

Stubhub walked me through the sales price and even gives you a list of tickets that have sold recently so you can price yours accordingly.

 

[Stitchfans]

Stubhub is individuals with tix they bought who want to resell them.. the people set the price not stubhub.. I'm sure stubhub gets a cut (Not sure how much) but I bought Lady Antebellum tix on there for a LOT more than face value but it was well worth it

If this is so, then why did Stubhub itself buy out nearly every ticket for several concerts DD wanted to go to? Yes, the price was outrageous so she was unable to go each time.

 

[Colleen27]

If this is so, then why did Stubhub itself buy out nearly every ticket for several concerts DD wanted to go to? Yes, the price was outrageous so she was unable to go each time.

Are you sure it was StubHub that was the buyer, as opposed to "investors" who earn their living buying up hot tickets and reselling them on the secondary market? I've never heard of StubHub buying inventory directly but there are scores of people who will gladly buy up as many tickets as possible to list there immediately.

 

[HelenePA]

If this is so, then why did Stubhub itself buy out nearly every ticket for several concerts DD wanted to go to? Yes, the price was outrageous so she was unable to go each time.

how do you know it was stubhub who was selling them and not a person like me? There may have been a TON of tix for sale on stubhub but that means nothing. Were they all the same exact price?

 

[Stitchfans]

how do you know it was stubhub who was selling them and not a person like me? There may have been a TON of tix for sale on stubhub but that means nothing. Were they all the same exact price?

Yes, they were all the exact same price for each concert. This is why I was led to believe it was Stubhub that bought out the concert. If I am mistaken, I'd be very surprised. But yes, I could be.

 

[sasywtch]

Not all concerts are 200$ a piece! I'm going to a music festival in Hershey in a few weeks and got tix for 17.50$ a piece thru a link from a social coupon page!Are they front row tix? nope (this will be my first non front row concert since 2000 but I couldn't justify the cost this time around) I'll be seeing Train, The Script, OneRepublic, Hanson (lol) and a few others for 17.50!!! I'll be taking my dd10 with me.

I was referring to the fan club tix for Barry Manilow for closer seats. I had 2nd row center in Birmingham and I'm spoiled now.

 

[HelenePA]

I was referring to the fan club tix for Barry Manilow for closer seats. I had 2nd row center in Birmingham and I'm spoiled now.

I understand.. I was 2nd Row for Bruce Springsteen and since the nothing else will do.. but I couldn't swing 1200 tix for this next one they include meet and greets and lots of other extras but that's insane for tix!

 

[RockAndRollBallerina]

Artists do have some control over ticket prices, they can choose to take out less extravagant productions and do a more bare bones approach for their shows. The more it costs in production, the higher the ticket prices are for fans.