Here's Where All The Tickets Went

[ijwthstd]

And it's not a reality so much as that it only effects premium events which include major mainstream artists. I and everyone else have next to no trouble seeing hundreds of the best indie acts out there with relative ease and few of those tickets end up on the resale market. It's just that these nefarious groups take advantage of the huge names since there's bigger profit potential involved. Most shows don't cost what a U2 show costs or anywhere in that range. Your indie band playing The Warfield in San Francisco for $30-40 plus fees doesn't really go for much higher on the resale market, if anything, because the fans just don't go if they can't get tickets. Whereas the resellers for major acts know that people don't want to get shut out of Bieber or Taylor Swift or U2 or the Stones and thus exploit that.

I've seen small venue shows go for ridiculous prices after selling out if there aren't many tickets at all on the aftermarket.

A lot of these tickets are fans planning on going but not if someone "bites."

Last Saturday I put my own Fleetwood Mac upper deck $64.75 ticket up for $150 for a few hours in case someone would bite, I would either forgo the grueling trip to Inglewood (idiot "protesters" were blocking the streets again) or pick up another one in a box office ticket drop. Though upper decks were going for $110-120 after a few hours I pulled the ticket and went. Nothing on TM and it was an aisle seat on a low row number.

All I got for U2 is upper deck singles for $48 for 3 shows which is about the upper end I pay for anything. Will decide what ones I keep after I see a setlist and a friend has first dibs on leftovers.

As far as loads of scalper priced tickets, like other products and services it pays to be an educated consumer and I don't spend much time worrying about what those who are not as educated end up paying.

 

[Hollow Island]

2000 tickets for the first Toronto show, 2500 on Stub Hub. Nearly 1/4 of the venue is being scalped on those two sites.

 

[Hollow Island]

I wouldnt buy ANY GA tix. Those are paperless CC/ID entry for all venues, it seems. Not worth risking.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

I have a stupid question about CC/ID tickets. What if someone buys one for you as a gift and they're not going to the show? Would you still be able to get in?

 

[Chrisedge]

Shows have ALWAYS had scalpers. Yea, 3000+ for an arena. Yes, they share databases of tickets (as shown in this thread). THIS IS NOTHING NEW.

 

[ClaytonsKitten]

Look what I just pulled via the app for Chi1. Sold out my arse. Yesterday I was pulling singles in the 200s throughout the day.

Can't find 3 seats together, of course. (Can't even find 2.)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[rennowba]

Look what I just pulled via the app for Chi1. Sold out my arse. Yesterday I was pulling singles in the 200s throughout the day.

Can't find 3 seats together, of course. (Can't even find 2.)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

If theres only a handfull of singles left then that does class as a sell out. I know its not technically but it is a sell out

 

[Wendyandkevinca]

If theres only a handfull of singles left then that does class as a sell out. I know its not technically but it is a sell out

yes, but it is total garbage to say TO1 is sold out and yet pull 4 together in multiple areas.

TM is far from transparent. i do not believe a fucking thing they say or u2.com frankly.

 

[ClaytonsKitten]

If theres only a handfull of singles left then that does class as a sell out. I know its not technically but it is a sell out

But yesterday I did the same searches and "best available" was sections around the 220s. (220, 221, maybe 224 at one point). How would a 100 level seat be worse than those? Seems kind of weird.

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[Hewson]

But yesterday I did the same searches and "best available" was sections around the 220s. (220, 221, maybe 224 at one point). How would a 100 level seat be worse than those? Seems kind of weird.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

That seat may have come back into the system today because someone had an order cancelled, or it may have been being viewed by someone else yesterday when you searched and therefore didn't pop up. There's a number of possibilities. But the show is definitely a sell out when there's just a few scattered singles available out of 18,000-20,000 tix, whatever the United Center capacity for this show is. Doesn't mean tickets can't be found, they can, and there'll certainly be production releases later.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

That seat may have come back into the system today because someone had an order cancelled, or it may have been being viewed by someone else yesterday when you searched and therefore didn't pop up. There's a number of possibilities. But the show is definitely a sell out when there's just a few scattered singles available out of 18,000-20,000 tix, whatever the United Center capacity for this show is. Doesn't mean tickets can't be found, they can, and there'll certainly be production releases later.

exactly. people have their tickets canceled due to credit card issues. people violate the rules for the presale. the production crew realizes that whole sections that they had originally blocked out for staging purposes can actually be used.

there are always ways to get tickets to sold out shows. just need a little patience.

 

[djparky]

exactly. people have their tickets canceled due to credit card issues. people violate the rules for the presale. the production crew realizes that whole sections that they had originally blocked out for staging purposes can actually be used.

there are always ways to get tickets to sold out shows. just need a little patience.

absolutely...got front row centre for George Michael at Earls Court on the day of the show, Killers tickets a couple of days before the show are 2 examples

don't buy from vileagogo or any of these re-sale sites...just wait...and eventually tickets will appear or the TM touts will lower the prices

There was a documentary here in the UK about all this, and wasn't denied that promoters dumped a load of tickets straight through to these places..yes some are genuine but too many times I've had getmein, vileagogo email before the on sale date offering tickets

 

[Axver]

In essence, all these new rules about ticket limits, no credit cards with the same billing address, etc., etc. are just making life harder for genuine fans while scalpers continue to hoard as many tickets as they always have.

 

[BWU2Buffs]

I have a stupid question about CC/ID tickets. What if someone buys one for you as a gift and they're not going to the show? Would you still be able to get in?

I suspect that a 'gift' and 'friend did not want to go' might be interpreted as "scalper" and in violation of said CC/ID entry policy.

That said, for the GA I scored I do plan to make photocopies of my credit card and statements just in case I happen to lose said credit card or get pick-pocketed or some other nefarious activity causes my card to go missing.

Sounds anal, perhaps, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Back to the scalper, LN/TM secondary market discussion...

 

[ClaytonsKitten]

In essence, all these new rules about ticket limits, no credit cards with the same billing address, etc., etc. are just making life harder for genuine fans while scalpers continue to hoard as many tickets as they always have.

Yep. Makes you long for the days of lining up and buying them in person.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[ijwthstd]

Yep. Makes you long for the days of lining up and buying them in person.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

I don't miss those days AT ALL.

The biggest thing going against the average fan is putting shows on sale on a weekday. That never happened for major shows way back when.

But also if you didn't like the pull while at the counter, you couldn't throw it back and spin the wheel again.

I had a leg up on the average person because I had my break scheduled at 9:55 and was running 4 computers on 2 different IP's all just to get 3 singles for 3 nights priced at $48! For a band I don't really care all that much about anymore but still want to see at least once more. Only bought 3 because I would have no problem getting rid of the 1 or 2 I don't want in case of any conflicting dates by bands with enough courtesy to not take my $5 half a year out.

(Tried to get a friend to help click, she flaked; my mom was unavailable to help, was spinning for pairs on 2 computers, never pulled anything)

 

[phommel]

Yep. Makes you long for the days of lining up and buying them in person.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

Indeed, that was a bit easier. But also in those days many people lined up for tickets with the intention of reselling. I saw it happening so often...

I just don't get why it's so difficult to prevent scalping...Make people buy tickets with CC and show up at the event with CC and ID. It's so easy! Ticketmaster just doesn't want it, and U2 accepts it. There is just too much money to be earned via reselling...it's a shame

 

[phommel]

Almost 1000 tickets available in resale on one of the dates in The Forum:

Resale Tickets | U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015 - The Forum at Ticketmaster

shouldn't be allowed this!

 

[Popmartijn]

I just don't get why it's so difficult to prevent scalping...Make people buy tickets with CC and show up at the event with CC and ID. It's so easy! Ticketmaster just doesn't want it

For the US & Canada (and some other shows, like London), they are doing this. Or at least for the GA tickets. But you still see those tickets up for resale. It may make scalping a bit more difficult, but I don't think you can prevent it.

 

[ClaytonsKitten]

http://instagram.com/p/wboDJPu-14/

Rocking the boat.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[ijwthstd]

Indeed, that was a bit easier. But also in those days many people lined up for tickets with the intention of reselling. I saw it happening so often...

I just don't get why it's so difficult to prevent scalping...Make people buy tickets with CC and show up at the event with CC and ID. It's so easy! Ticketmaster just doesn't want it, and U2 accepts it. There is just too much money to be earned via reselling...it's a shame

It's way too difficult to do for the entire arena.

Also if you are taking my money for a concert ticket 9 months off I should be able to resell that ticket if there is a change of plans.

Another thing about the "old days" was putting shows on sale 6 to 8 weeks in advance.

 

[bfloxng]

The tickets on secondary websites are all tied to the same database. You can go on SH and write down a list of tickets and find the exact same seats on Vivid, TM+, eBay, etc. There is software that will remove tickets from all sites when they sell (although some brokers do it manually). I have in the past purposely bought the exact same tickets on eBay and SH simultaneously, and when the eBay seller tries to worm out of it, I tell him I'm leaving negative feedback and he fulfills the order. Then he tells SH he can't fulfill the order and I'll promptly get a call from SH offering substitutes, which I decline and ask for a voucher, which they will always grant, usually for $100 or more depending on the value of the tickets. It's one way to work the broker system.

In many cases brokers list tickets they don't actually have, knowing they will ultimately get them. I landed a pair of GA's to Chicago 5/7/05 on eBay listed by a girl for exactly what she paid for them (face value...$133/pair if memory serves) stating "I bought these for my boyfriend for Valentine's Day and I caught him cheating on me...and this is payback." I saw them within minutes of their listing and bought them. I then received half a dozen emails from various brokers offering me absurd prices for the pair, telling me they "oversold" their allotment . Not my problem. In that case, brokers did not anticipate the demand that would arise for those GAs (I think it was primarily because the rumor was the DVD shoot would begin that day, when in reality it was May 9-10), and there were tickets selling for upwards of $1,000/pair the week prior to the show. Many brokers got caught "holding the bag" as they had sold seats months earlier that they didn't have. So when you see "ticket will ship after xx/xx/xxxx", that typically means they don't even have the tickets but are trying to time the market assuming demand will drop as will prices but early buyers are locked in to higher prices. For the May 10 show, after I got home from the May 7 show, there was a ticket drop of countless GA tickets (because they wanted to pack to house for the shoot and held back a significant number of tickets). I will never forget just for kicks putting 50 GA tickets (one that were selling for $250 each just a week earlier) in my cart and posting a screen shot of it on this site if memory serves. Again, many brokers got caught holding the bag because the last minute rush at inflated prices ceased because there were hundreds of GAs at face on TM. Consequently, prices on SH and eBay dropped to BELOW face value because brokers didn't want to get stuck with a ticket and get nothing in return.

At the end of the day, it's a shady business, but there are ways to work it to your advantage. As I have repeatedly said, the ticket limits are essentially bogus and brokers simply ignore them. And fans who abide by them ultimately pay the price.

 

[popacrobat]

it's not as common sense as you would think.

most second hand sites deal from the same pool of tickets, as far as actual professional ticket brokers go.

there's an obvious connection between ticket brokers/concert promoters that funnel tickets to professional brokers. Louis CK actually did a study on it on one of his last tour. He had a certain number of tickets sold only through his site, with the condition that his team has the right to cancel any ticket that is found on a second hand market being sold for more than face+fees. He also had a second group of tickets that were sold through traditional means (ticketmaster, etc).

He found that, of the tickets that he sold through his own site (with the face value rule), less than 1% of those tickets ended up on second hand sites.

Of the tickets that were sold through traditional means, an almost uniform across the board 25% of tickets ended up on second hand sites; and the majority of sites had the same tickets for sale.

Case in point...

For opening night at Rogers Arena

Section 328, Row 15 - 2 tickets at $63

these exact same seats are available on
ticketliquidator.com
worldticketsource.com
ticketnetwork.com
showticketbooth.com
barginseatsonline.com

etc etc etc

a look at the source code for all of these second hand sites shows one thing in common. all of the ticket queue areas are run by the same site... tickettransaction.com. Each site has their own unique broker ID# listed, and each event has it's own unique ID as well. There is also a line for "price multiplier," a number that automatically increases the price of the ticket. The standard multiplier on most of these sites was 2.0, or double the face value of the ticket. But some of the sites, like say barginseatsonline, had a smaller multiplier... Their number was 1.7543859649123. They sold the same tickets listed above for $60. What a deal!

They also put in a suggested price of $105, which is crossed out, because hey... it's a deal! (1.7 times face).

These same sites are also already selling tickets for Sunday July 26th and Monday July 27th at Madison Square Garden... shows that have yet to even go on sale.

ding ding ding.

 

[Dfit00]

Forget about it, if you want a GA ticket for any of the tour's shows in any city be prepared to shell out anywhere from $300 to $450 for each one.

 

[gvox]

Forget about it, if you want a GA ticket for any of the tour's shows in any city be prepared to shell out anywhere from $300 to $450 for each one.

Huh. I'm only down $400 almost to the penny and I'm seeing 5 shows, all GA.


Sent from my ass crack

 

[BoMac]

Yep. Makes you long for the days of lining up and buying them in person.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using U2 Interference mobile app

Funny story about the one time I lined up for U2 tickets. It was St. Patrick's Day weekend and Vertigo Tour tickets were going on sale at 10 a.m. on Saturday. So I got to the Bell Centre in Montreal late Thursday night and slept there for two days.

When I arrived, there was about 20 people ahead of me. By Saturday morning, just before the tickets went on sale, there was about 2,500 people, easily. And those first 20 people? Just before 10 a.m. they left and were replaced by others. It turns out they were homeless people paid $20 or so by scalpers to sleep at the arena and take up spots until they swoop in at the last second.

The one good thing about all this is that, as I was making my way to the wicket, a sign flashed above the window that a second show had been added. So, in essence, I was the very first to snap up tickets to the second show, while those scalpers ahead of me were shut out (at least at that moment. I'm sure they got their hands on them by other means).

 

[Gustavo Klein]

I don't find any GA tickets for resale in TM.
It can't be resold there?

It is amazing how TM/U2 allows people to buy tickets and put to resale minutes later for x times the face value.

 

[Galeongirl]

Forget about it, if you want a GA ticket for any of the tour's shows in any city be prepared to shell out anywhere from $300 to $450 for each one.

The two 70$ GA tickets in my desk drawer disagree. Hope to grab some more next monday.

 

[beershack]

Forget about it, if you want a GA ticket for any of the tour's shows in any city be prepared to shell out anywhere from $300 to $450 for each one.

You could have just purchased a $50 fan club membership and EASILY bought GA tickets to any show on the tour

 

[ijwthstd]

I don't find any GA tickets for resale in TM.
It can't be resold there?

It is amazing how TM/U2 allows people to buy tickets and put to resale minutes later for x times the face value.

And yet I can't just transfer the 2 $44's I grabbed for Phoenix on Tuesday to my friend's account which is always preferred when dealing with PDF's.

"Sorry, Ticket Transfer is currently unavailable.
The artist, team, or venue may not offer it for this event or it could be temporarily delayed.
Please try again later or contact Fan Support for more info"

 

[djparky]

The two 70$ GA tickets in my desk drawer disagree. Hope to grab some more next monday.

all our tickets are standard price GA tickets