By Greg Kot

http://leisureblogs.chica....html#more

In a follow-up email, Mickelson wrote: “I am not saying that you can draw any direct correlation between Jam's results for the first six months of 2010 and Live Nation's since they control the outdoor amphitheater and indoor arena market. But I do see a trend in that there are less performers who can fill an amphitheater or arena and more acts that are performing in theaters and clubs.”

i love smaller shows just as much. some artists who can't sell out an arena, for whatever reason should really get over their egos ( and bank accounts) and consider it. i do like the intimacy of smaller venues, all seats are good, musicians right in your face, lol... i think it's very beneficial all the way around. for fans and the artist.

Excellent article! I'm amazed that the Eagles had to cancel some shows (I assume because of poor ticket sales?).

And just once, I wish someone would try this:

For the first week of ticket sales, an auction is held for the best seats. But not a bid-by-bid auction. Just a one-time bid. You pick the number of seats you want and how much you're willing to pay.

Then at the end of the week, the auction closes and the tickets are allocated in the order of highest bid to lowest bid.

The remaining seats then go onsale in the usual manner.

This would kill ticket scalpers, because the best seats have already been sold directly to the consumer for market value. Even if a ticket scalper won the bid for some of the best seats, he'd be paying market value so there would be little to no margin for him.

From the fan's standpoint, you wouldn't be held hostage for what a ticket scalper wants for a particular seat. You bid the most you can afford, and get what the market dictates. You might not get front row, but if you're in the auction and your bid is decent, you're going to get good seats. And you'll know that your money went to the artist, not to a sleazy ticket scalper (if that matters).

The artist would maximize his revenue, too. Sure, the Eagles might be charging a higher average ticket price under their system than under this system, but I guarantee you that under this system, they wouldn't have had to cancel any shows. So I bet they'd do better numbers for the whole tour.

Thoughts?

"...a few weeks ago, executives of Live Nation Entertainment – the country’s largest concert promoter and ticket seller – reported a 12 percent decline in revenue and lashed out at shareholders for abandoning the company as the value of its stock plummeted."

Damn you shareholders for not watching your money go down the drain in the worst economic time since the depression! What's wrong with you people!

Oh, and good idea Rodeo - except for the fact that artists would be accused of gouging their fans in the same way that scalpers do. That is why some artists buy their first few rows and sell them exclusively to fan club members and such.

"...Jason Garner, the company’s CEO for global music, acknowledged that ticket prices must come down, though he put the onus on artists to lower their demands. Flexible pricing of tickets will become a bigger part of the company’s operating plan, with prices for seats fluctuating on an open market based on demand."

LiveNation: Hey artist, we're gonna need you to lower your ticket prices. The touring industry is hurting

[Edited 8/3/10 10:39am]

BlaqueKnight said:

Oh, and good idea Rodeo - except for the fact that artists would be accused of gouging their fans in the same way that scalpers do. That is why some artists buy their first few rows and sell them exclusively to fan club members and such.[/b]

No doubt you have to sell it right. But the bottom line is that for most of those seats, fans would pay either the same amount to the artist that they would to the promoter, or the fan could pick the price he wants and maybe get better seats at that price than he would from a promoter.

I'd market it as "The end of the ticket scalper!" and/or "For once, YOU get to pick the price you pay! Not me, and not scalpers - YOU!!!" or something like that.

As far as the fan clubs, you could still do that but the fans buying at the auction would have to know what seats are already gone to fan club members.

The downside to the fan club reservation is that scalpers are going to be members too, and snap up as many of those tickets as they can. I don't know what the answer to that problem is.

But like I said, I wish someone would try this one time, just to see how it works and how it goes over with the fans.

..

[Edited 8/3/10 11:25am]

RodeoSchro said:

BlaqueKnight said:

Oh, and good idea Rodeo - except for the fact that artists would be accused of gouging their fans in the same way that scalpers do. That is why some artists buy their first few rows and sell them exclusively to fan club members and such.[/b]

No doubt you have to sell it right. But the bottom line is that for most of those seats, fans would pay either the same amount to the artist that they would to the promoter, or the fan could pick the price he wants and maybe get better seats at that price than he would from a promoter.

I'd market it as "The end of the ticket scalper!" and/or "For once, YOU get to pick the price you pay! Not me, and not scalpers - YOU!!!" or something like that.

As far as the fan clubs, you could still do that but the fans buying at the auction would have to know what seats are already gone to fan club members.

The downside to the fan club reservation is that scalpers are going to be members too, and snap up as many of those tickets as they can. I don't know what the answer to that problem is.

But like I said, I wish someone would try this one time, just to see how it works and how it goes over with the fans.

..

[Edited 8/3/10 11:25am]

I'm sure someone will. A mid-level band/artist with a smaller team responsible for their own booking can do this.