How does TICKETMASTER get away with Auctions??

[hazlnut]

I don't spend a lot of time on the TM website, but with Rush I'm checking back often to see how sales are going and I noticed the AUCTIONS.

 

Ticketmaster is auctioning off Pit Seats to the Irvine Meadows show. And it's not an ordinary auction either. You have to bid on a number of seats simultaneously--I'm assuming that the highest bid gets the best seats and the second highest gets the next best seats.

 

According to the AUCTION RULES:

 

QUOTE

Bid Ranking: Bids are ranked first by the amount bid per ticket. In case of a tie, bids are ranked by the time that the bids were placed, with earlier bids for the same amount receiving priority. If other bidders later submit higher bids, your bid may be reassigned to a lower Ticket Group or you may receive no tickets at all, depending on the quantities of tickets in those bids and in the Ticket Groups.

 

Basically, they are seeing what the market will bear in terms of price and selling seats to the highest bidder.

 

How do they get away with this? What is the face value of the seat? It's a sliding price-point. The ticket now cost whatever you are willing to pay.

 

They already have a monopoly on event ticket sales, now they're edging in on broker/ebay territory. It seems like it's only a select number of tickets and maybe this is allowed under state law--but I can't see how.

[EmotionDetector]

Yep...they have been doing this for years now. I remember trying this back on the R30 tour.

 

Unfortunately, that is the way it goes. TM has a stranglehold on the ticket business, so they basically run the show, and we all have to live with it.

 

But yeah, the auctions make me laugh. Basically, it's like legalized scalping. On the streets, you can get in trouble for it. But on TM, anything goes. They get away with whatever they want.

 

Again...reasons why people HATE Ticketmaster.

 

(BTW...since we have to live with it, I have joined in on those too! )

[metaldad]

They should just change the name to Ticketscalper.com. Because that's what they became years ago

[dakota2112]

I know it doesn't seem fair, but honestly... what alternative is there to ensure people can get the tickets that they really want?

 

It's fundamental economics. Supply vs demand. There are only so many 1st/2nd/3rd row seats available. Is there a more fair way of selling these than to offer to the highest bidder? If there is, I'd sure like to hear it.

 

There are potentially hundreds of people that would love to get their hands on one of just a few dozen great seats. Let's say they do a lottery, and leave it to the luck of the draw. Maybe you get them, maybe you don't. Chances are, you don't. Especially since more and more people will be joining in the pool. The only realistic way to guarantee someone can get the seats they want is to sell them high. You gotta pay to play. And no, I'm not made of money either. But I did fork over about $400 per ticket at R30. Best show ever. We were basically front row, right inbetween Ged's mic stand and his keyboards. Was it worth it? Yes. Was it expensive as h*ll? Yes.

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (dakota2112 @ Apr 27 2010, 01:24 PM)

I know it doesn't seem fair, but honestly... what alternative is there to ensure people can get the tickets that they really want? It's fundamental economics. Supply vs demand. There are only so many 1st/2nd/3rd row seats available. Is there a more fair way of selling these than to offer to the highest bidder? If there is, I'd sure like to hear it. There are potentially hundreds of people that would love to get their hands on one of just a few dozen great seats. Let's say they do a lottery, and leave it to the luck of the draw. Maybe you get them, maybe you don't. Chances are, you don't. Especially since more and more people will be joining in the pool. The only realistic way to guarantee someone can get the seats they want is to sell them high. You gotta pay to play. And no, I'm not made of money either. But I did fork over about $400 per ticket at R30. Best show ever. We were basically front row, right inbetween Ged's mic stand and his keyboards. Was it worth it? Yes. Was it expensive as h*ll? Yes.

Yeah...it definitely is a classic case of supply vs demand.

 

Like we said in another thread, 2ND ROW tickets at the ACC went for $520.00!!

 

Isn't that insane? Think about it...people in the front row at that same show will have probably paid less for their tickets than those behind them.

 

But this is the way for those who want to secure top seats to do it via Ticketmaster, and it gives people who are skeptical to go through brokers another outlet to get good seats.

 

Again, I don't agree with the double-standard that TM gets, but I can certainly see why they do it. It benefits them, and when they put the bait out, people bite.

[hazlnut]

Here's what I don't get -- they are holding back a number premium tickets from the pool of tickets in the presale and public sale. How is this fair?

 

Also, I noticed that the VIP seats were coming up right and left of the stage -- some to the far side of the seating area. Those seats are close, but they are at a shitty angle.

 

The center section rows a-c are now part of this ticketmaster auction which means the VIP people never even had a shot at them.

[limbo]

the minnesota state fair director will not stand for it that is why you can not buy vip tickets to the show and there is/was no auction

[Drumnut]

I just bought 2 tickets for The MGM show in Las Vegas. Section Lower 11 row W for $450.00 from Stub Hub. I don't really care where I sit, I just want to be in the building. If I can trade up for better seats, great, if not, I'm happy with just being there. Ticket brokers are crooks, plain and simple. Edited April 27, 2010 by Drumnut

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (hazlnut @ Apr 27 2010, 02:51 PM)

Here's what I don't get -- they are holding back a number premium tickets from the pool of tickets in the presale and public sale. How is this fair? Also, I noticed that the VIP seats were coming up right and left of the stage -- some to the far side of the seating area. Those seats are close, but they are at a shitty angle. The center section rows a-c are now part of this ticketmaster auction which means the VIP people never even had a shot at them.

Simple answer...it is NOT fair.

 

Nothing that TM does is fair...that was determined a long time ago.

 

That's why I always say these presales (for the most part) are a farce and a joke to me.

 

People log on right at the start of the presale, and wonder why they can't get anything close to the stage. I've been there before myself, but this is why. TM doesn't release the premium seats during the 'presales' and whatnot.

 

Like I said before, the whole ticket buying process is an absolute joke. I hate it...but that's how it is. I love going to concerts, and that's why I deal with it.

 

Unfortunately, this will probably always be the case while they are in power.

[dakota2112]

Also keep in mind that in the big scheme of all things financial, this is pocket change. There are much bigger fish for congressional hearings to worry about than concert ticket sales

 

Buying tickets sure is more frustrating than it used to be though, I agree completely about that.

 

Edit - one thing that does tick me off is that some people up there in the front row may have gotten tickets from a radio station giveaway for example, and they might be just casual fans. That one does p*** me off.

Edited April 27, 2010 by dakota2112

[krlowe]

The fact they have a monopoly on the ticketing business is a whole other issue, but the fact remains they will only auction the best seats if people will buy them. There is a market, they make a big profit and so does the band.

 

No congressional hearing is needed, when tickets go on sale it's a crap shoot because there are the same number of good seats vs shitty seats.

 

A congressional hearing is needed on the damn computer programmers who get $5000 to design captcha decoding devices. I know how these things work. They are set to be in sync with GMT, and when 9:59:59 rolls around the system refreshes THOUSANDS of times until the 'broker' is first in line in which within "1 second" they have several PAIRS of GREAT seats pulled up before you can even put in the captcha word.

 

The programs are designed to watch the 'time' alottment and move on to the next screen to 'stall' and keep the tickets in their hands. When the broker isn't fast enough to decide weather he wants them, he loses them and that's when you get that occasional "great pair" 10-20 minutes in.

 

It's BULLSHIT. Everyone needs a fair shot.

[Rushgirl]

I got boned by the auction today and I am STEAMING mad, and will take ticketmaster and Live Nation to task for this.

 

Short story - myself and a friend co-ordinated the last 50 seconds of the auction, put in a HIGH bid that matched and won the auction! We get our notices and she is BANG on in the centre and I have the end crappy seats that were the MINIMUM bid.

 

No one at TM customer service can help, I ask for a supervisor, - we don't have one............OH REALLY

 

I have sent scathing e-mails on this!!!!!!!

 

I will be DAMNED if I am paying $580 for an end seat in 2nd row!!!!!!!!

[-D-RocK-]

Ticketmaster are infidels!

 

 

I have begun jihad against Ticketmaster.........ALL MUST DIE!!

[-D-RocK-]

Rushgirl.......can we hook up after the show or what?

[toddnbeth]

Personally I like the auctions. Generally, if you are not trying to get the absolute best seats in the auction, you can really good seats for a decent price. I got sec 103 row H for Shoreline toward the center aisle for $220 apiece. You have to keep in mind that there are no additional charges on these tickets. $220 is the actual total price, which means I got a pretty fair deal I think. Last tour I got the first row behind the Pit at Nokia, dead center for $300. I thought that was hella good. Beats what the brokers are asking.

I dont understand what people think is unfair about the tickets being sold for what the market decides they are worth. I think the fairest way to sell tickets would be if ALL tickets were sold in this way. Sure the prime seats would sell for more and no one would get lucky and score front row for face value, but the trade-off is that the less desirable seats at some venues would sell for pennies.

[quickfree]

Its the system. You can't fight it.

 

They also have this Ticket insurance thing which nearly sneaks into the extra fees unless you catch it at the last moment. A total ripoff.

 

People have used the service in the past to file claims and got really bad service in return which didn't make it worth it.

 

[Rushgirl]

QUOTE (toddnbeth @ Apr 27 2010, 04:31 PM)

Personally I like the auctions. Generally, if you are not trying to get the absolute best seats in the auction, you can really good seats for a decent price. I got sec 103 row H for Shoreline toward the center aisle for $220 apiece. You have to keep in mind that there are no additional charges on these tickets. $220 is the actual total price, which means I got a pretty fair deal I think. Last tour I got the first row behind the Pit at Nokia, dead center for $300. I thought that was hella good. Beats what the brokers are asking. I dont understand what people think is unfair about the tickets being sold for what the market decides they are worth. I think the fairest way to sell tickets would be if ALL tickets were sold in this way. Sure the prime seats would sell for more and no one would get lucky and score front row for face value, but the trade-off is that the less desirable seats at some venues would sell for pennies.

I agree and have had the best luck with them - until now.

 

I never thought in a zillion years that the auction for the ACC would get to 580 a ticket

 

in 07 a bunch of us went in on front rows and scored them CENTRE for 410!!!

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (Rushgirl @ Apr 27 2010, 05:25 PM)

I got boned by the auction today and I am STEAMING mad, and will take ticketmaster and Live Nation to task for this. Short story - myself and a friend co-ordinated the last 50 seconds of the auction, put in a HIGH bid that matched and won the auction! We get our notices and she is BANG on in the centre and I have the end crappy seats that were the MINIMUM bid. No one at TM customer service can help, I ask for a supervisor, - we don't have one............OH REALLY I have sent scathing e-mails on this!!!!!!! I will be DAMNED if I am paying $580 for an end seat in 2nd row!!!!!!!!

 

RG...you were one of those peeps who spent $580!? Damn...nice work!!

 

I ended up winning 6th Row, so I'll be just a few rows behind ya! I believe I'll be somewhere between the middle and Ged's side.

 

Can't wait though...best seats I will have ever had at any concert so far!

[Rushgirl]

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Apr 28 2010, 08:03 AM)

QUOTE (Rushgirl @ Apr 27 2010, 05:25 PM) I got boned by the auction today and I am STEAMING mad, and will take ticketmaster and Live Nation to task for this. Short story - myself and a friend co-ordinated the last 50 seconds of the auction, put in a HIGH bid that matched and won the auction!  We get our notices and she is BANG on in the centre and I have the end crappy seats that were the MINIMUM bid. No one at TM customer service can help, I ask for a supervisor, - we don't have one............OH REALLY I have sent scathing e-mails on this!!!!!!! I will be DAMNED if I am paying $580 for an end seat in 2nd row!!!!!!!!   RG...you were one of those peeps who spent $580!? Damn...nice work!!   I ended up winning 6th Row, so I'll be just a few rows behind ya! I believe I'll be somewhere between the middle and Ged's side.   Can't wait though...best seats I will have ever had at any concert so far! Ya, but here is the thing:   My friend and I co-ordinated the timing of our highest bid to the second so we would go in at the same time with our last bid with 50 seconds to close. Bam! We do it, the auction closes YIPPEEEE!! High price, but what the hell.   Then I go and pring my receipt and I have seats 3-6!!!!! That is on the f***ing END and the minimum bid prices closed at 520! My friend who I was co-ordinating with ends up- DEAD CENTRE!!!   HOW THE f**k does that work............   I am fighting the bastards now........hell for $580 I want PROOF of how they got 13 seats between us and I ended up paying a max price for a minimum bid position.   Legalized brokers are what Ticketbastard are!!!!!!!!   Rant over   Commence with tour!

[TullSkull]

Bet I'd get busted if I had an auction in the parking lot with the 2 tics I have that I dont need..

I'm in the auction business too..

 

So what do you say?

Say give me a 100 and now 105..... LOL

[Don Quixote]

QUOTE (Drumnut @ Apr 27 2010, 01:56 PM)

I just bought 2 tickets for The MGM show in Las Vegas. Section Lower 11 row W for $450.00 from Stub Hub. I don't really care where I sit, I just want to be in the building. If I can trade up for better seats, great, if not, I'm happy with just being there. Ticket brokers are crooks, plain and simple.

Oh sweet irony.

 

What do you think StubHub is?

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (Rushgirl @ Apr 28 2010, 09:09 AM)

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Apr 28 2010, 08:03 AM) QUOTE (Rushgirl @ Apr 27 2010, 05:25 PM) I got boned by the auction today and I am STEAMING mad, and will take ticketmaster and Live Nation to task for this. Short story - myself and a friend co-ordinated the last 50 seconds of the auction, put in a HIGH bid that matched and won the auction!  We get our notices and she is BANG on in the centre and I have the end crappy seats that were the MINIMUM bid. No one at TM customer service can help, I ask for a supervisor, - we don't have one............OH REALLY I have sent scathing e-mails on this!!!!!!! I will be DAMNED if I am paying $580 for an end seat in 2nd row!!!!!!!!   RG...you were one of those peeps who spent $580!? Damn...nice work!!   I ended up winning 6th Row, so I'll be just a few rows behind ya! I believe I'll be somewhere between the middle and Ged's side.   Can't wait though...best seats I will have ever had at any concert so far! Ya, but here is the thing:   My friend and I co-ordinated the timing of our highest bid to the second so we would go in at the same time with our last bid with 50 seconds to close. Bam! We do it, the auction closes YIPPEEEE!! High price, but what the hell.   Then I go and pring my receipt and I have seats 3-6!!!!! That is on the f***ing END and the minimum bid prices closed at 520! My friend who I was co-ordinating with ends up- DEAD CENTRE!!!   HOW THE f**k does that work............   I am fighting the bastards now........hell for $580 I want PROOF of how they got 13 seats between us and I ended up paying a max price for a minimum bid position.   Legalized brokers are what Ticketbastard are!!!!!!!!   Rant over   Commence with tour! Yeah...that sucks.   I have no idea how they go about selecting everyone's seats. Again, this is just like TM though...no rhyme or reason behind what they do. They do as they please, and we as consumers have to sit back and take it.   That's the one thing that really bothers me about these auctions. What they really should do, is split the auctioned seats into smaller groupings of seats, like say:   Row 2: Seats 1-8, Row 2: Seats 9-16, Row 2: Seats 17-24, etc.   That way, there is a good chance that the seats near the middle will get the higher bids, but at least everyone is fighting for the seats they really want...instead of paying a crapload to sit right at the end.   I am fairly happy with what I got...as it seems like every row has around 40 some-odd seats, and I ended up around the low 30's for seats out of at least 42 seats. So, closer to the end, but not right at the end either.   Hopefully you get some help/feedback on what happened with your seats, but I don't like your chances of getting anything helpful from them.

[TullSkull]

QUOTE

Ticket brokers are crooks, plain and simple.

 

and should be busted and go to jail like we would for doing what they do..

 

Very unfair. Double standard

[hazlnut]

QUOTE (Don Quixote @ Apr 28 2010, 08:30 AM)

QUOTE (Drumnut @ Apr 27 2010, 01:56 PM) I just bought 2 tickets for The MGM show in Las Vegas. Section Lower 11 row W for $450.00 from Stub Hub. I don't really care where I sit, I just want to be in the building. If I can trade up for better seats, great, if not, I'm happy with just being there. Ticket brokers are crooks, plain and simple. Oh sweet irony.   What do you think StubHub is? I've sold tickets on Stubhub and I'm not a broker.   Oh sweet foot in mouth.

[hazlnut]

QUOTE (krlowe @ Apr 27 2010, 04:16 PM)

The fact they have a monopoly on the ticketing business is a whole other issue, but the fact remains they will only auction the best seats if people will buy them. There is a market, they make a big profit and so does the band. No congressional hearing is needed, when tickets go on sale it's a crap shoot because there are the same number of good seats vs shitty seats. A congressional hearing is needed on the damn computer programmers who get $5000 to design captcha decoding devices. I know how these things work. They are set to be in sync with GMT, and when 9:59:59 rolls around the system refreshes THOUSANDS of times until the 'broker' is first in line in which within "1 second" they have several PAIRS of GREAT seats pulled up before you can even put in the captcha word. The programs are designed to watch the 'time' alottment and move on to the next screen to 'stall' and keep the tickets in their hands. When the broker isn't fast enough to decide weather he wants them, he loses them and that's when you get that occasional "great pair" 10-20 minutes in. It's BULLSHIT. Everyone needs a fair shot.

That's some great inside info.

 

I was wondering how it works, because when bad loge seats are coming up 2 minutes after the start of the sale, then better seats 20 minutes in, something is not right.

 

Best Available = center seats.

 

I like how you get to pick your seats on some airlines. First come, first serve.

 

I like Stubhub because if you're patient and it's not a one-time only show, then you can get good seats a fair price. It's also great for getting last minute baseball seats--some stadiums even have a Stubhub pickup window.

 

You can totally spot the brokers who overprice their seats, and then the average fan listing just over face, and sometimes below.