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U2's Online Ticket Launch for Fan Club Bollixed Up
Many members who paid $40 for right to buy advance tickets frozen out
By Greg Kot
Tribune music critic
Update: A message posted to U2's Web site today raises the prospect of additional dates -- and tickets -- for the band's North American tour: U2 are hoping to return to North America for more shows this Autumn. ... While the Autumn leg is not confirmed yet, the already announced opening North American leg is likely to include rollover dates - that is additional shows in currently advertised venues. We will be mailing U2.Com subscribers who have not yet been able to buy tickets in the North American presale with early information on how to buy tickets at these additional first leg shows.
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On U2's last North American tour in 2001, singer Bono told the millions of fans who have made the Irish quartet one of the richest bands in rock history: "I want to thank you for giving us a wonderful life."
But this week, the most ardent of those fans may not be feeling much appreciated. An advance ticket sale to the band's fan club for U2's forthcoming North American and European tours has turned into a public-relations nightmare.
So many complaints poured into U2's management offices in Ireland and New York and to Ticketmaster during the presale Tuesday that the ticketing agency was moved to issue an apology Tuesday night. It blamed the fan-club fiasco on "an incredibly high level of demand" that resulted in "slower than normal service."
After paying $40 in membership fees to gain access to tickets this week before they're made available to the general public, fan-club members reported encountering crashed Web sites, faulty passwords and a dearth of choice seats.
Many fans were left without tickets for the 13-city North American tour, which includes concerts May 7 and May 9 at the United Center. Others reported finding that the $49.50 tickets for standing room nearest the stage were already sold out when they logged in, and that they had to settle for more expensive $95 or $165 seats farther from the stage. To add insult to injury, ticket scalpers had already swooped in and were offering choice tickets for more than $1,000 on eBay.
"We feel betrayed by this," said Collin Souter, a film critic from Prospect Heights who has attended 18 U2 shows since 1987. Souter paid to join the fan club but found he could get nothing better than third-balcony seats at the United Center after logging in only seconds after the presale began Tuesday morning. "It's a really sad week for U2 fans."
In its official response, posted on its U2.com Web site, the band acknowledged that "some fans have let us know that they have experienced some frustrating technical problems," and said Ticketmaster was "contacting all U2.com European members who failed to book their tickets to explain how they can still do this well within the presale window." No mention was made of the ticketing problems in North America, even as fans filled message boards with invective.
"I thought the point of dishing out my $40 membership fee was to gain access to the coveted [general admission] floor seats," wrote one disgruntled fan, zooropabails, at atu2.com. "The GA seats for both shows in Chicago sold out in literally 10 seconds. Is this possible? U2.com has successfully screwed all of us."
Such presales through band Web sites have become increasingly fashionable, including those run by arena-filling acts such as Pearl Jam, R.E.M. and the String Cheese Incident. On its 2002 tour, the Rolling Stones charged fans $60 to gain access to tickets before the general public.
In an earlier message on the U2 Web site publicizing the fan-club subscriptions, fans were informed that the $40 fee "assured access to the online ticket presale."
"They made it sound like a great deal, but they sold far too many memberships to fulfill their promise," said Sharon Carleton, an insurance executive in Omaha, who tried to buy tickets for the Chicago shows but found she could get only seats behind the stage for $160 each. She decided not to buy those seats and says she'll likely sit out the forthcoming tour.
In return for her fan-club membership money, she received "a fabulous little metal key chain that says `with thanks.' I found that a little ironic getting it this week. It'll remind me to pay more attention to this kind of thing in the future."
--The Morning Call
Many members who paid $40 for right to buy advance tickets frozen out
By Greg Kot
Tribune music critic
Update: A message posted to U2's Web site today raises the prospect of additional dates -- and tickets -- for the band's North American tour: U2 are hoping to return to North America for more shows this Autumn. ... While the Autumn leg is not confirmed yet, the already announced opening North American leg is likely to include rollover dates - that is additional shows in currently advertised venues. We will be mailing U2.Com subscribers who have not yet been able to buy tickets in the North American presale with early information on how to buy tickets at these additional first leg shows.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On U2's last North American tour in 2001, singer Bono told the millions of fans who have made the Irish quartet one of the richest bands in rock history: "I want to thank you for giving us a wonderful life."
But this week, the most ardent of those fans may not be feeling much appreciated. An advance ticket sale to the band's fan club for U2's forthcoming North American and European tours has turned into a public-relations nightmare.
So many complaints poured into U2's management offices in Ireland and New York and to Ticketmaster during the presale Tuesday that the ticketing agency was moved to issue an apology Tuesday night. It blamed the fan-club fiasco on "an incredibly high level of demand" that resulted in "slower than normal service."
After paying $40 in membership fees to gain access to tickets this week before they're made available to the general public, fan-club members reported encountering crashed Web sites, faulty passwords and a dearth of choice seats.
Many fans were left without tickets for the 13-city North American tour, which includes concerts May 7 and May 9 at the United Center. Others reported finding that the $49.50 tickets for standing room nearest the stage were already sold out when they logged in, and that they had to settle for more expensive $95 or $165 seats farther from the stage. To add insult to injury, ticket scalpers had already swooped in and were offering choice tickets for more than $1,000 on eBay.
"We feel betrayed by this," said Collin Souter, a film critic from Prospect Heights who has attended 18 U2 shows since 1987. Souter paid to join the fan club but found he could get nothing better than third-balcony seats at the United Center after logging in only seconds after the presale began Tuesday morning. "It's a really sad week for U2 fans."
In its official response, posted on its U2.com Web site, the band acknowledged that "some fans have let us know that they have experienced some frustrating technical problems," and said Ticketmaster was "contacting all U2.com European members who failed to book their tickets to explain how they can still do this well within the presale window." No mention was made of the ticketing problems in North America, even as fans filled message boards with invective.
"I thought the point of dishing out my $40 membership fee was to gain access to the coveted [general admission] floor seats," wrote one disgruntled fan, zooropabails, at atu2.com. "The GA seats for both shows in Chicago sold out in literally 10 seconds. Is this possible? U2.com has successfully screwed all of us."
Such presales through band Web sites have become increasingly fashionable, including those run by arena-filling acts such as Pearl Jam, R.E.M. and the String Cheese Incident. On its 2002 tour, the Rolling Stones charged fans $60 to gain access to tickets before the general public.
In an earlier message on the U2 Web site publicizing the fan-club subscriptions, fans were informed that the $40 fee "assured access to the online ticket presale."
"They made it sound like a great deal, but they sold far too many memberships to fulfill their promise," said Sharon Carleton, an insurance executive in Omaha, who tried to buy tickets for the Chicago shows but found she could get only seats behind the stage for $160 each. She decided not to buy those seats and says she'll likely sit out the forthcoming tour.
In return for her fan-club membership money, she received "a fabulous little metal key chain that says `with thanks.' I found that a little ironic getting it this week. It'll remind me to pay more attention to this kind of thing in the future."
--The Morning Call
