U2 getting a bit too pricey?

[wizard2c]

Hi!

Just wondering is anyone else kinda feels the same. It seems that U2 is getting a bit too pricey for my blood.

Like the U2.com membership is $40.00......most fanclubs are like $15-$25.
U2 i-Pods are $349.00
They are selling books for $90.00
I don't know what concert tickets are going for......but they're far from the Garth Brooks era of $15 to $75

I like U2's music and will occasionally buy a reasonably priced book or magazine or songbook.......but other than that....they are beyond my league...although I did buy the U2 i-Pod only because I was going to get one anyway and chose their model.

So I guess I'll just sit back and enjoy the music as the rest becomes unreachable.
Comments are welcome.

carol
wizard2c

 

[Balfron]

i doubt u2 decides ipod prices, but i agree that the extra £20 you have to pay to get it in black seems a bit strange.

The complete U2 however is very very good value, if you dont mind paying that much money in the first place, if you see what i mean

 

[ramblin rose]

They are selling books for $90.00

U2 is not selling that $90 book, that's Anton's book.

 

[Muggsy]

Hi!


They are selling books for $90.00

Well... i find that price very reasonable if it is a photography book with high-quality print, paper and stuff... art books are usually that expensive, and that's an item that i would buy.

 

[ZeroDude]

^
Amen to that

 

[beau2ifulday]

Re: Re: U2 getting a bit too pricey?

Well... i find that price very reasonable if it is a photography book with high-quality print, paper and stuff... art books are usually that expensive, and that's an item that i would buy.

And it's a big book too - we're no talking about 100 pages or whatever. I think it's over 400 pages.

 

[doctorwho]

Hi!

Just wondering is anyone else kinda feels the same. It seems that U2 is getting a bit too pricey for my blood.

Like the U2.com membership is $40.00......most fanclubs are like $15-$25.
U2 i-Pods are $349.00
They are selling books for $90.00
I don't know what concert tickets are going for......but they're far from the Garth Brooks era of $15 to $75

The membership to U2.com is high - I think it should be half that amount. Part of me thinks they made it $40 to try to discourage scalpers. Of course, that proved to be a spectacular failure. To a successful scalper, $40 is nothing. Of course, by 2006, the tour should be over or winding down - and I hope U2.com then correspondingly drops their renewal rate. I paid $20 as a former Propaganda subscriber, but I wouldn't pay $40 to renew.

As for the U2-themed iPod, it's just $50 more. And they, in turn, give you a $50 coupon. You can get almost 450 songs for a mere $99, which is something like 23 cents a song - far cheaper than the 99 cents iTunes charges for their songs. So that's a good deal!

The books are not U2's doing. I'm sure Anton has retained control over his photos, much the same way U2 has retained control over their music. So this is Anton's book - and as others stated, if these are high quality images on high quality paper, the price is justified.

Lastly, you stated Garth Brooks range of $15-75. However, isn't Brooks retired? If not, clearly he's not the force he once was. In contrast, U2 is in heavy demand. Despite this, U2's tickets are $49-165. While this is higher than Brooks, it's not 10x the amount. The most expensive is just 2x the amount of Brooks. Furthermore, U2's prices are FAR less than other artists (Madonna charged $300+ for some tickets).

So overall, I'd say U2 are about where they should be - perhaps even on the cheap side!

 

[wizard2c]

reply

Hi!

Ticket prices being what they are.....and what people really did pay for them I don't really know except you would have to add the $40.00 club fee for joining.

Garth, BTW, is retired because he wants to be there for his children when they are growing up and I commend him for that. I do know that when he sold tickets (and he was a hot commodity) he made sure his fans paid as little as possible for his concerts.

I'm not knocking U2 at all.....it's just that rock music seems to run in a different direction from country when it comes to concert ticket prices. Country just seems to be a bit more fan "friendly".

Hey.........whatever makes one happy......me....I'm happy to sit back and listen to the music.......you can hear it almost anytime you want to.

Thanks for the replies though.

carol
wizard2c

 

[david]

all good photography books are near the 100 dollar price and that's just not for bands either.

 

[Do Miss America]

Re: reply

I'm not knocking U2 at all.....it's just that rock music seems to run in a different direction from country when it comes to concert ticket prices. Country just seems to be a bit more fan "friendly".

Hey.........whatever makes one happy......me....I'm happy to sit back and listen to the music.......you can hear it almost anytime you want to.

Thanks for the replies though.

carol
wizard2c

Toby Keith; either $85 or $110, doesn't even have a 49 option. Yeah that sounds so much more "friendly".

 

[indra]

Hi!

Just wondering is anyone else kinda feels the same. It seems that U2 is getting a bit too pricey for my blood.

Like the U2.com membership is $40.00......most fanclubs are like $15-$25.
U2 i-Pods are $349.00
They are selling books for $90.00
I don't know what concert tickets are going for......but they're far from the Garth Brooks era of $15 to $75

I like U2's music and will occasionally buy a reasonably priced book or magazine or songbook.......but other than that....they are beyond my league...although I did buy the U2 i-Pod only because I was going to get one anyway and chose their model.

So I guess I'll just sit back and enjoy the music as the rest becomes unreachable.
Comments are welcome.

carol
wizard2c

While I kind of agree it's getting really expensive to get everything U2 puts out (or is put out about U2), buying their basic cds is incredibly easy and cheap. So the essence of U2 is very affordable, it's all the other trappings that get expensive.

I like a lot of relatively obscure bands, so the price of live shows (generally at clubs) is usually very cheap ($10 - $20), but I've paid as much as $35 (purchase price plus shipping from overseas) for a new cd (and it was a basic edition cd) from a band I like.

There are people who want everything to do with U2 and are willing and able to afford the price. Most of the rest of us pick and choose what parts of what's available that we want the most, and then we work to afford that. I guess it just comes down to what you want and how much you're willing to pay for what you want.

Kind of a bitch if you want it all but can't afford it though!

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

U2 are expensive but so is just about every other hot commodity these days. the only affordable arena tickets these days are the teeniebopper bands. i could go see justin timberlake for $35 or U2 for $85. aerosmith and other acts up there with U2 though are charging the same amount so you really can't complain. tickets in general have become absolutely outrageous. ~$100 per person to see someone sing for a couple hours?

that's why i rarely go see anyone in concert (okay i lied, i rarely see anyone in concert because no one comes here).

 

[doctorwho]

Re: reply

Hi!

Ticket prices being what they are.....and what people really did pay for them I don't really know except you would have to add the $40.00 club fee for joining.

Garth, BTW, is retired because he wants to be there for his children when they are growing up and I commend him for that. I do know that when he sold tickets (and he was a hot commodity) he made sure his fans paid as little as possible for his concerts.

I'm not knocking U2 at all.....it's just that rock music seems to run in a different direction from country when it comes to concert ticket prices. Country just seems to be a bit more fan "friendly".

Hey.........whatever makes one happy......me....I'm happy to sit back and listen to the music.......you can hear it almost anytime you want to.

But Brooks' retirement has no longer made him a "hot item". So if he's now out of retirement and touring, then surely you can't expect his prices to match U2's as he's simply not the force he was years ago. If you are quoting old prices, then that's not fair. After all, back in 1997 the Bee Gees were charging $300 per ticket!

Also, you cannot add the $40 into the ticket price. Not everyone paid that much to join U2.com. Also, not everyone used U2.com to get tickets. That is, plenty of people obtained tickets without being U2.com members. So that statement is erroneous.

Going back to Brooks, maybe his prices are lower, but I don't think U2's are extreme at all. U2's lowest prices are just $49.50, which provide the best views of the band/stage. Back in the ZOO TV era, U2 had tickets for $35. So the price difference is not that extreme. Granted, there are also very high priced tickets for $160, but I'm not sure how much control U2 has over all ticket prices - but at least you have the options.

 

[ImOuttaControl]

Re: Re: reply

But Brooks' retirement has no longer made him a "hot item". So if he's now out of retirement and touring, then surely you can't expect his prices to match U2's as he's simply not the force he was years ago. If you are quoting old prices, then that's not fair. After all, back in 1997 the Bee Gees were charging $300 per ticket!

Yeah, U2 are in high demand right now...they can charge a lot for tickets.

BUT; just because they can charge high prices doesn't mean they should.

 

[BonoIsMyMuse]

I don't think they're getting any more expensive than any other band. Concert tickets aren't cheap anymore. I'm 26, and I can remember getting $15 and $20 concert tickets in high school. In the last few years, I've gone to concerts where a T-shirt costs twice that. I still really like that U2 is selling what could potentially be the best seats (GA) for the lowest price.

The fanclub is expensive, yes, but if a person wants first crack at tickets, then maybe it's worth it. Most tickets are selling well over forty dollars above face value on eBay. Maybe it's better that U2 gets the money than a scalper?

I bought my tickets through TM in the general sale, so nobody got any extra money from me...