Rip off ticket prices

My concert going proper didn't start until around '77, at which time I reckon tickets were priced at around £10-20 depending on band/venue. This was all in London. I don't reckon that paying 2-3 times as much now for a London venue is bad going but I've always had a problem with the overpriced baggage that goes with it - programmes, food/drink, parking etc... Steering clear of London is a good start. If you possibly can.

This is why I don't much bother with concerts any more. Sky high prices for shit in a bun and warm piss, endless queuing in car and on foot, people talking all the way through a concert, agruing with eachother, yacking into mobiles etc... And rock/pop concerts are even worse!

Cheers

Harry

Not only are "stars" like madge charging over £100 for tickets and selling out, they then charge a booking fee and recently a handling charge. Don't get me started on the journeys to places like Wembley. It'll all be better if we get the Olympics though.(my arse).
My local arts center tried to charge a booking fee when I had just walked in on spec.

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This is why I don't much bother with concerts any more. Sky high prices for shit in a bun and warm piss, endless queuing in car and on foot, people talking all the way through a concert, agruing with eachother, yacking into mobiles etc... And rock/pop concerts are even worse!

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Howard

BigH47:

Don't get me started on booking fees! No one has been thus far able to satisfactorily explain to me why the booking charge is per ticket and not per transaction?

Mole Man

Booking fees really **** me off as well. Handling - fair play - but the tix price should include the bloody booking cost.

Some venues are worse than others; just saw The Music in Bristol's Carling Academy for £13 - ok, so "beer" (warm piss Carling) was £2.70 a CAN, but we'd stoked up on real ale from the Wetherspoons, so a bottle of water each at £2 and a BLINDING 85 mins performance was good VFM when all is said and done. £13 is cheap for a band that play longer than a CD, when a CD might be crap!

Merch on the other hand - yeah, let's not go there eh? And Madge wanting £100+ is crazy - we saw her in 2001 at Earls Court for £40 and that was a lot of dosh AFAIC.

Glastonbury is good VFM compared to the majority of single band gigs.

__________________________
Don't wanna be cremated or buried in a grave
Just dump me in a plastic bag and leave me on the pavement
A tribute to your modern world, your great society
I'm just another victim of your highrise fantasy!

Gigs I go to I really enjoy and have no complaints. My fave place by far is Brixton Academy.

domfbrown:

Re: booking fees, often times if they post the tickets to you they charge you £1 for the priviledge! It's high time we decided to boycott these bums...

Mole Man

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Originally posted by HTK:
Sky high prices for shit in a bun and warm piss, endless queuing in car and on foot, people talking all the way through

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We are not talking of concerts here Harry, but stadium type events. Not really a "concert" is it!

Stadium type events do cost a huge amount to put on, and the stadiums need to be 80%+ sold out to break even, even at the quoted prices (though why Billy Connerly costs so much I just don't know).

However most 1000-3000 person venues across the country usually cost £10-£25 which I don't think is too bad.

Sadly, they charge what the market will stand. Theoretically, the ticket should be priced to result in all but one ticket being sold to maximise revenue.

If we don't pay the prices, then the prices drop. It does appear that there are not only enough people with the disposable to buy these tickets at their already high face value, but also to pay x4 on ebay.

The first gig I ever went to was Pink Floyd at the Empire Pool, Wembley, in March 1977. Tickets were a whopping £3.75.

The last major single-act gig I went to was Brian Wilson, in July. Tickets were £50.

A friend of mine, who's a music biz accountant, says that if hidden charges like "booking fees" are taken to account, the price of a gig ticket, even for major acts in stadiums and big arenas, have risen much, much faster than inflation (about 60% faster, apparently). The price of last year's Stones gigs in the UK were ridiculous - £75 for a seat at Tickenham? £300 for the Astoria? Madness!!!

If you look at people like Madogga, the ones charging the really stratospheric prices, you'll notice that they just do a few gigs in smallish venues, knowing that demand will outstrip supply and that people will pay anything. I know a mug who paid £800 for a pair tickets to the old whore's gigs at Earls Court in 2001.

But I really think the issue here is the extra charges, such as booking fees.

I recently bought two tickets for John Martyn @ the Shepherd's Bush Empire (a great venue BTW). Face value of the tickets was £22.50 each.

Total fee? £51.90! Fucking outrageous! You pay 16% on top of the tickets for the privilege of ordering via an automated website, and bog-standard 1st class postage!



Kevin (BBC Radio 4)

I can't believe the prices some of you are reporting. Calling it a "rip off" seems too mild. I guess I would just never go to shows in the UK.

Although I haven't lived in expensive US cities like NY and LA, I don't think I've ever paid more than $30 for a show. I don't go to big acts, just indie gigs.

After 20 years, Fugazi still charges $6 for their shows. Ironically, they're the rare band I might pay more than $30 to see....

Chaps

If you are stupid enough to pay those prices, the organisers would be stupid not to take your money.

The answer is simple. Don't pay. If enough people boycott these functions, the prices will drop.

You have only yourselves to blame.

Regards

Mick

All venues Rasher. I was generalising but stadiums are certainly the second worst neunes after the Barbican.



Saw the Stones at Earls Court - now when was that? 79/80/81 - someone will remember. Got offered £50 for my ticket (I think it cost me arouns £15). Wish I'd taken the money. Bloody awful concert.

Cheers

Harry

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Originally posted by HTK:
All venues Rasher. I was generalising but stadiums are certainly the second worst veunes after the Barbican.



Saw the Stones at Earls Court - now when was that? 79/80/81 - someone will remember. Got offered £50 for my ticket (I think it cost me arouns £15). Wish I'd taken the money. Bloody awful concert.

Cheers

Harry

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Harry

oops

Harry

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Saw the Stones at Earls Court - now when was that? 79/80/81 - someone will remember. Got offered £50 for my ticket (I think it cost me arouns £15). Wish I'd taken the money. Bloody awful concert.

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Just think Harry, if you had sold the ticket in, let's say, '81, and invested the £50 in Circuit City stock for the rest of the decade, you would have seen more than 8,000% in price gain for £4m. If you'd then invested that £4m in Dell stock throughout the '90s, you would have seen another 55,000%(!) gain for £220bn, making you far more wealthy than even Bill Gates.

Anyway, sorry that concert sucked.

The recent Pixies and Built to Spill show (with numerous lesser knowns) cost $20, and I consider that my ceiling. Like ejl I rarely pay $10-12 in Seattle, which isn't as pricey as SF or NYC but not cheap.

PS- Ironically, today I accepted a job with a company who shares its parent company with Ticketmaster.

Yanno elj that's exactly what I thought. $20 to see the Pixies - I'd call that a bargain if it wasn't for the fact it would never happen over here

Harry

I meant to say I usually pay $10-12. Usually, chaps- usually.

The last concert I bought tickets to here in Toronto from ticketmaster were $49.50 each or $79.50 each (a group of us going and they didn't have enough seats together so we have some in different sections).

That is the face value of the ticket in CAD (about 2.3 to the £), on top of that there is a $1.25 "Building Facility Charge", a $9.75 "Convenience Charge" per ticket, then a choice of the following per transaction:

• $6.50 - ticket fast delivery - this is the one I really don't understand, they send you an e-mail of the ticket, you print it and that's your ticket.
• $14.00 - priority courier - 2 business days delivery.
• $4.00 - ticket centre pickup - go and pick up the ticket yourself at an office (several participating stores around).
• $4.00 - pick up at the box office of the venue.

You can always come and see us play for £9 at the Spitz. Bargain. Wait a sec- it's only £8 on the door - bloody rip off!



Regards

Stephen the Spiv

Tim Bowness/Rothko/Roger Eno/Gamine.

Start Time 8pm.

Tim Bowness supports the release of his debut solo album 'My Hotel Year' on
One Little Indian Records with a performance at The Spitz.

Playing a selection of songs from the album as well as incorporating material from No-Man, Tim will be backed by a full band featuring Peter Chilvers, Pete Morgan (UXB), Stephen Bennett (Henry Fool) and Andrew Booker
(Pulse Engine).

Also included on the bill is ambient legend, Roger Eno, celebrated, atmospheric bass-driven combo Rothko and the intriguing ballad exotica of Gamine.

Tickets £8 on the door, advance tickets £9 (inclusive of booking fee) via
www.burningshed.com.(from the 'live' section)
www.spitz.co.uk

Officially available in the shops in late October, Tim's debut album is
currently on sale via the www.burningshed.com shop at
http://www.burningshed.com/index.asp?page=tim_bowness for £10 plus shipping.

Using this purchasing power website to calculate equivalent costs....

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my older brother-in-law recalled seeing Led Zeppelin at Earl's Court in 1975 for £2.50

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which equates to £12.89 now

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The first gig I ever went to was Pink Floyd at the Empire Pool, Wembley, in March 1977. Tickets were a whopping £3.75.

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which equates to £14.37 now

Floyd and Zep were probably the equivalent draw in the late 70's to Oasis and U2 now. Like you say, todays prices are just a rip off of the 'put-it-on-credit' generation.

Jonathan

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Originally posted by ejl:

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Saw the Stones at Earls Court - now when was that? 79/80/81 - someone will remember. Got offered £50 for my ticket (I think it cost me arouns £15). Wish I'd taken the money. Bloody awful concert.

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Just think Harry, if you had sold the ticket in, let's say, '81, and invested the £50 in Circuit City stock for the rest of the decade, you would have seen more than 8,000% in price gain for £4m. If you'd then invested that £4m in Dell stock throughout the '90s, you would have seen another 55,000%(!) gain for £220bn, making you far more wealthy than even Bill Gates.

Anyway, sorry that concert sucked.

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Never mind Harry, at least you can now sell the used ticket stub on Ebay for probably about - let's see - 1979-80? - say £75. Not too bad.
What's that?...you threw it away?

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Originally posted by ejl:
Just think Harry, if you had sold the ticket in, let's say, '81, and invested the £50 in Circuit City stock for the rest of the decade, you would have seen more than 8,000% in price gain for £4m.

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Actually, £4,000. You've taken 100% as 100x.

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If you'd then invested that £4m in Dell stock throughout the '90s, you would have seen another 55,000%(!) gain for £220bn, making you far more wealthy than even Bill Gates.

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Actually, £2,200,000. Now your taken 100% as 1,000x!

Still, I'd bite your hand off for £2.2m!

Mind you, if every time I put money in the bank they computed the interest as 1000x the principal every time they re-computed my balance, I reckon I'd have bought the whole planet by now!

cheers, Martin

E-mail:- MartinPayne (at) Dial.Pipex.com. Put "Naim" in the title.

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Now your taken 100% as 1,000x!

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Sigh

Since becoming a billionaire, Martin, I've found it unnecessary to fuss over all of those little zeros.

In sympathy with the common man, however, I still won't abide high ticket prices.

Eric