August 2008
The titan of tickets
Illustrations by Jason Ford
To see Madonna up close and personal this fall, you'll have to deal with her gorilla. No, not a beefy bodyguard; we mean Ticketmaster,
the 800-pound gorilla of ticket sellers to live events almost everywhere. Last year, the West Hollywood, Calif., company sold
142 million tickets worth some $8 billion for Miley Cyrus performances; speeches by the Dalai Lama in Bethlehem, Pa.; Los
Angeles Lakers basketball; and about 9,000 other artists, teams, and events.
If you're not near a stadium, concert hall, or Broadway box office, Ticketmaster's call centers, 6,700 retail outlets, and Web site (www.ticketmaster.com) put the convenience in "convenience" charges.
To a $55 ticket, for example, Ticketmaster might tack on fees of about $11. Fees can be far higher, however. To get a $95 rear-section upper-level seat for Madonna's concert in East Rutherford, N.J., this October, fans who buy from Ticketmaster must pay $17.95 in levies. And that's before delivery charges—up to $25 for UPS.
The master is now being challenged. Live Nation, the big dog in the live music business, which controls more than 155 venues and promotes shows by more than 1,500 performers, will begin selling original tickets to many events next year.
The rise of Live Nation is not necessarily good news for consumers. Last January, its CEO, Michael Rapino, seemed to suggest to Wall Street stock analysts that Live Nation would charge a single service fee instead of Ticketmaster's multiple fees. But he also said he expected no dramatic change in fees.
If you're not near a stadium, concert hall, or Broadway box office, Ticketmaster's call centers, 6,700 retail outlets, and Web site (www.ticketmaster.com) put the convenience in "convenience" charges.
To a $55 ticket, for example, Ticketmaster might tack on fees of about $11. Fees can be far higher, however. To get a $95 rear-section upper-level seat for Madonna's concert in East Rutherford, N.J., this October, fans who buy from Ticketmaster must pay $17.95 in levies. And that's before delivery charges—up to $25 for UPS.
The master is now being challenged. Live Nation, the big dog in the live music business, which controls more than 155 venues and promotes shows by more than 1,500 performers, will begin selling original tickets to many events next year.
The rise of Live Nation is not necessarily good news for consumers. Last January, its CEO, Michael Rapino, seemed to suggest to Wall Street stock analysts that Live Nation would charge a single service fee instead of Ticketmaster's multiple fees. But he also said he expected no dramatic change in fees.
