The Ticket Tax
The LA Times is running a story today about how Live Nation is going up against Ticketmaster to try and lower ticket prices. I think this is a very good thing for the industry, if only to spark the debate.
I went down to my local box office this past weekend to buy tickets for a few upcoming shows. The line was kind of long because apparently there were some printer errors, but after about 20 minutes I had my tickets in hand, sans "service" fees.
Had I purchased these tickets online I would have paid a $7.75 Convenience Charge per ticket plus a $4.60 order processing fee.
The show is less than two weeks out, so I wouldn't have the option to get the tickets mailed to me for free, but instead would have had the option to have them emailed to me and print them at home for an additional charge $2.50. Strange, isn't it...that I should be charged for using my own printer, not using up any human's time to give me the tickets or mail them to me, or pick them up on the night of the show, but instead do everything on my own.
I spent a total of $40 for two $20 tickets at the box office. The same tickets would have cost me $60.10 online. That's over 50% in fees, charges, whatever you want to call them...feels more like a Tax.
Why?
I understand the need to cover infrastructure, server and customer service costs, but in this day and age wouldn't you think it would be easier to get a ticket for a general admission show (no seat assignments needed) without having to jump through hoops, pay enormous costs or drive down to the venue to get your tickets?
It's hard enough to get people to commit to going out to see music as it is. Now add the additional costs and inconvenience of avoiding them and you end up with a lot of people waiting until the night of the show to decide to go. Those that do go could end up getting shut out of a sold out show, and it becomes all too easy for someone who hasn't bought a regular priced ticket to opt out for the evening before they even make the trek.
Sure, if you really like the band and really want to go, you'll make the call and bite the bullet one way or another. But what about the discovery? What about the young band on the cusp of greatness that still needs all the help they can get, even when playing a place that holds 1,000 people.
While people might not complain about ticket prices as they're walking out of the show, it certainly has a major influence on their decisions of whether or not they'll go. In a marketplace such as this, something should be done to make it easier.
Glad to see somebody is trying to do something about it...
I went down to my local box office this past weekend to buy tickets for a few upcoming shows. The line was kind of long because apparently there were some printer errors, but after about 20 minutes I had my tickets in hand, sans "service" fees.
Had I purchased these tickets online I would have paid a $7.75 Convenience Charge per ticket plus a $4.60 order processing fee.
The show is less than two weeks out, so I wouldn't have the option to get the tickets mailed to me for free, but instead would have had the option to have them emailed to me and print them at home for an additional charge $2.50. Strange, isn't it...that I should be charged for using my own printer, not using up any human's time to give me the tickets or mail them to me, or pick them up on the night of the show, but instead do everything on my own.
I spent a total of $40 for two $20 tickets at the box office. The same tickets would have cost me $60.10 online. That's over 50% in fees, charges, whatever you want to call them...feels more like a Tax.
Why?
I understand the need to cover infrastructure, server and customer service costs, but in this day and age wouldn't you think it would be easier to get a ticket for a general admission show (no seat assignments needed) without having to jump through hoops, pay enormous costs or drive down to the venue to get your tickets?
It's hard enough to get people to commit to going out to see music as it is. Now add the additional costs and inconvenience of avoiding them and you end up with a lot of people waiting until the night of the show to decide to go. Those that do go could end up getting shut out of a sold out show, and it becomes all too easy for someone who hasn't bought a regular priced ticket to opt out for the evening before they even make the trek.
Sure, if you really like the band and really want to go, you'll make the call and bite the bullet one way or another. But what about the discovery? What about the young band on the cusp of greatness that still needs all the help they can get, even when playing a place that holds 1,000 people.
While people might not complain about ticket prices as they're walking out of the show, it certainly has a major influence on their decisions of whether or not they'll go. In a marketplace such as this, something should be done to make it easier.
Glad to see somebody is trying to do something about it...
posted by Andy at
9:43 AM
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