just got off the phone with a ticketmaster customer person. they are so nice (no matter what anybody says) and after i told him that livenation is attempting to sell tickets to the same show that ticketmaster is, he told me he had to speak with his sup. and put me on hold. he came back flabbergasted and could not believe they were doing this, and had no information about whether their tickets would be any different than theirs. shitty.
Live Nation - ticket service charges just keep getting worse
I think most of this sort of overlay is just to drive traffic to Live Nation's site. If you poke around at other events they list that aren't at their venues, they just link you back to Ticketmaster.com eventually.
oh yeah, i have seen that before. you are probably right.
on the other hand, they may have separate inventory ("you sell half, i'll sell half" - like the radiohead tour this summer), or they might have some complex agreement that allows them to pull from the same inventory.
to add more fuel to the fire: i looked in to buying tickets for Tricky in NYC. face: $32.50. "Ticket Fee": $12.25. yup, that's a 38% mark-up. $45… not sure its worth it to me.
to add more fuel to the fire: i looked in to buying tickets for Tricky in NYC. face: $32.50. "Ticket Fee": $12.25. yup, that's a 38% mark-up. $45… not sure its worth it to me.
Everybody wrote:
livenation:
Andrew Bird
Thursday 02/19/09
Show: 8:00 p.m.
The Fillmore - S.F.
SAN FRANCISCO
Gen Admission Open Dance Flr
Section GA, Row G04, Seat # 96
Adult $32.50
Ticket Fee $13.50
if you go to the fillmore on a sunday between 10 and 4 to buy your tickets you don't pay a service charge. . .otherwise it's $2.
just talked to a person at livenation, who was even nicer than the person at ticketmaster. they said that it will be a common practice now that both companies will be selling tickets for same shows. each will have their own seperate allotment of tickets. for the dead at verizon, ticketmaster has the higher price, better seat tickets, and live nation is getting the cheaper seats. but that is not how it will be for every act. very interesting indeed.
oh, great, one more thing to worry about when buying tickets for an in-demand show: which retailer will have the better seats? on high-demand shows, you get one pull… no time to hit up both TM and LN, so now it'll involve calling them up and hoping you can shake down this info.
if/when people do come across this info, feel free to share with the board.
if/when people do come across this info, feel free to share with the board.
eh, I'm still hung up on the $4 'will call' fee thru tickets.com.
Driveway wrote:
eh, I'm still hung up on the $4 'will call' fee thru tickets.com.
i think that the fee is high given the level of service that one gets, but there has to be SOME charge for will-call. the ticket window at the club needs to be hooked in to the tickets.com network, needs a special printer, staff needs to be trained, etc.
but again, why will-call costs as much as it does to have them mailed is beyond me.
and since we're bitching about tickets.com - what a f*ck-up of a website. looks like it was designed in 1997. front page continuously asks me what country i'm in - ever heard of cookies? - and the asks me if i'm interested in buying tickets or finding a ticketing solution. when 98% of your traffic is choosing one option, you don't add an extra step by making them choose - you make it the default, and let the 2% click the "for ticketing solutions info" link.
Bombay wrote:walkonby wrote:
i do like the fact that ticketmaster now offers insurance on your tickets, in case you can't make the show, and will get your money back.
Has anyone ever used this? There's a ton of legalese in the description of what it does/doesn't cover. "Change of personal plans" doesn't cut it. They reserve the right to request documentation to prove your claims - including the right to ask for an autopsy, if your claim is "death". Is it really that hard to get a refund?
i've just noticed that tickets.com also offers ticket insurance. the tickets.come plan isn't very restrictive (i.e. acceptable reasons for refunds include illness, car break-down and flight delay)… not that i can be bothered to investigate TM's conditions.
i strongly suspect that ticket insurance is the concert industry equivalent of extended warranties: rarely worth the money and just another way for the retailer to squeeze extra cash out of the consumer.
My tickets.com is cookied.
don't you just love to be the first post of a fresh new page within a thread?
I so do.
It's like being the first person to hit base in a game of hide & seek.
It's like being the first person to hit base in a game of hide & seek.
Ben Kweller at 930 Club
Ticket - $20
Service - $4.75
Mail/Will Call - $4
Total - $28.75
Service fee is 43.75% of face value. I guess there's no point in complaining though.
Ticket - $20
Service - $4.75
Mail/Will Call - $4
Total - $28.75
Service fee is 43.75% of face value. I guess there's no point in complaining though.
Dave, your blog posting fascinated me – just sent a link to a bunch of my concert-going buddies. Geez oh pete.
Driveway wrote:
Ben Kweller at 930 Club
Ticket - $20
Service - $4.75
Mail/Will Call - $4
Total - $28.75
Service fee is 43.75% of face value. I guess there's no point in complaining though.
Well, the service charge is less than 25% - Tickets.com is usually better than LN or TM… but yeah, $4.00 for will call is pretty absurd.
Bags wrote:
Dave, your blog posting fascinated me – just sent a link to a bunch of my concert-going buddies. Geez oh pete.
That story did see a bit of a spike in traffic - glad you liked it… ;D
info: http://www.livenation.com/clubpassport/
Live Nation's New Passport: http://pollstar.com/blogs/news/archive/2009/09/16/689599.aspx
might make sense if you live in LA or NYC or any of the other markets listed. somehow, i don't mind being left off the list :D
sweetcell wrote:
might make sense if you live in LA or NYC or any of the other markets listed. somehow, i don't mind being left off the list :D
Current Passport Participating shows in SF (Fillmore):
Wed, 09/23/09: 08:00 p.m. Revolting Cocks
Thu, 09/24/09: 08:00 p.m. Manic Street Preachers
Sun, 09/27/09: 08:00 p.m. 7-Eleven Slurpee presents Honor Society, flavored by Coke
Tue, 09/29/09: 8:00 p.m. Kailash Kher
Wed, 09/30/09: 8:00 p.m. Perez Hilton Presents IDA MARIA with LADYHAWKE
Mmmm, no. But a 9:30 Fourm Pass…that might work.
Anaheim on the other hand would get you the Psych furs, Citizen Cope and Motorhead. That would be enough for me.
i wouldn't mind revolting cocks & MSP - those two shows alone would pay for the pass. anything after that would be gravy.
mmmmmmmm, graaaaaaaaavy.
i would buy a 930 pass in a heartbeat. hey seth… (although the possibility of one is nil. LN has the advantage of being both the venue operator & the promoter/tour organizer… seth isn't)
edit: actually, maybe it isn't impossible: the 930 could sell a pass that only allows day-of reservations, i.e. shows that are unlikely to sell out - might as well get some revenue from that otherwise empty space, no?
mmmmmmmm, graaaaaaaaavy.
i would buy a 930 pass in a heartbeat. hey seth… (although the possibility of one is nil. LN has the advantage of being both the venue operator & the promoter/tour organizer… seth isn't)
edit: actually, maybe it isn't impossible: the 930 could sell a pass that only allows day-of reservations, i.e. shows that are unlikely to sell out - might as well get some revenue from that otherwise empty space, no?