Buying tickets for big music events can be physically exhausting

[Infinity Times Two]

So tickets dropped for my SO's favorite band, but she was working at that time so I was ordered to buy them.

Ho-ly shit. These ticket sites are truly scumbags. Every psychological trick in the book is represented here. Constant "Hey buddy, 5000 people are ready to pounce on your ticket, you should hurry up!" and "Woops! Those seats were taken, we MIGHT give you these more expensive seats...", also not showing the final price until you confirm the purchase, leading you to naturally think "Well, I got this far..." even though the price ballooned from the first step.

If the ideal for these experience is you can feel good about your purchase so you return the next time, this is the complete opposite. I feel drained, scammed, I probably aged a year during the process and I never want to do this again. But I will probably have to at some point, and that's probably what they are banking on. Fuck capitalism.

 

[Deleted member 2254]

I feel lucky that none of my absolute favourite artists are the kind where you need to spend 80 Euros for a ticket which you also have to buy in the first 2 minutes and be logged in 4 hours prior because else you're SOL. Worst I had to endure had to be a concert that sold out in about 8 hours, but that was still a fairly reasonable timeframe to act, with the price set in stone and no bullshitting on the website. When I hear about people refreshing like madmen for a U2 concert, spending like 100 Euros for a ticket then when the event comes they put a tent like 2 days before so they get one of the front rows instead of watching from like 300 metres away... man, I so don't want to be ever be involved with that kind of shit.

 

[TheBeardedOne]

Yeah, buying concert tickets (or even sporting tickets) is a pain in the ass these days. I wish we could go back to the days where you had to go get them from an outlet or store, or the place itself. Nine Inch Nails had the right idea.

You have to deal with scalpers who are run by organized crime, bots, shady Ticketmaster practices, etc.

I once got Shania Twain tickets for a couple of my family members. I heard about a presale the day before they want on sale, and was able to bypass it needing a certain credit card to get disabled seating. One person going was in a wheelchair.

I tried online, but Ticketmaster's website was a pain and wouldn't work. My cousin gave me different codes to use, because he works in the business, but it wouldn't fully cooperate. So I called. The first time, I wasn't able to get the tickets and had to call back and talk to somebody else in the southern US.

He was nice and helpful and got it to mostly work, then put me on hold and that fucked me over because of Ticketmaster. How's that? Well, the tickets were super expensive (thank God I wasn't paying). It was well over a hundred dollars, maybe $150, for nosebleeds and wheelchair seating was limited to about 13 or 15 seats it looked like. I asked him to order me two tickets, one for the wheelchair and one for a companion (I had done it wrong online and didn't select it that way so it wouldn't let me proceed.) Anyways, he looked into those tickets, then put me on hold for some unbeknownst reason and took a while. Then when he came back on the line he told me that those tickets were gone and the only thing that was left were the almost $250 each tickets in the 100s. I panicked, said yes, bought them and then minutes later the other tickets became available again but it was too late.

 

[liquidtmd]

Yeah, I didn't get Hugh Jackman tickets for his UK leg this morning.

Three browsers open, multiple sites and even he Irish Ticketmaster - all SoL at 9:00.01.

Fuck them and fuck resale sites

 

[Aftermath]

Let me guess Ticketbastard? They are loathed quite a bit.

I hate when you go to pre-orders like if your a member of a vip/fanclub thing with some bands/shows and it still says oooh certain tickets sold out, like really min one of a presale? Either thats b.s and they holding onto the best seats or they have black market ticket resellers already buying blocks up

 

[Infinity Times Two]

Let me guess Ticketbastard? They are loathed quite a bit.

Click to shrink...

In this instance, it was Viagogo, which I believe is not owned by Ticketmaster.

They still do similar shady shit.

 

[Dan]

If you're wanting to go to your favourite band's gig, what you do is register for their site and obtain a pre-sale code. It's far easier to score a ticket from the genuine supplier this way than it is to go on the internet when they go on sale to the general public.

 

[Carn]

If you're wanting to go to your favourite band's gig, what you do is register for their site and obtain a pre-sale code.

Click to shrink...

Maybe thats how it works for bigger acts but most artists/bands do not have such a system (in my experience) :(

 

[Freakzilla]

Thank God I hate concerts.

 

[Mr Delabee]

Yesterday I worked a night shift 11-6am and saw that FM-84 were playing their first UK gig and tickets were on sale at 9am.
So I stayed up for a few hours to nab some....

Of course the Seetickets site died on its arse (like it did with Glasto) venue was max capacity of 300, sold out in 15 mins, in those 15 mins I simply couldn't get one single ticket, it annoyed me SO much. I was shouting at my wife saying it's 2018 and we STILL can't get ticket websites that don't explode when they actually sell the tickets.

Anyways I decided to go to bed, get some sleep for my late shift again, I woke up to find they had changed to a bigger venue and put more tickets on sale whilst I was sleeping, FFS.

Also I just want to say very clearly, fuck these ticket sites that also own secondary ticket selling sites, absolute scum of the earth.

 

[Deleted member 8644]

Scalpers are scum

 

[Dr.Phibes]

I think the last time I ordered tickets in advance was in 2004. Not caring for the big mainstream acts has some benefits.

 

[Deleted member 29676]

If i can't buy from the box office I just don't go at this point. So far no regrets.

 

[machine]

As bad as it is now, I still think it's infinitely better than used to be in the '80s. I'll take logging in to a website and using presale codes over standing in line for 12 hours at a physical location for the slight chance you can get decent seats for a big show. Both systems have flaws but at least I now I can buy tickets when they go on sale without having to take a day off work to stand in line.

 

[Daeda]

So glad the Netherlands has a relatively functioning system. The majority of the resellers here are actually people who cant go (a startup called Ticketswap limits the resell price to 120% and is the marktleader now). Even Ticketmaster is okay if you just make sure you're online at the time of sale. Plus we have an insane amount of venues for such a small country.

US must be terrible though. Went to see a show in NYC earlier this year and it was quite a different experience.

Long story short, move to the Netherlands I guess

 

[Blue Ninja]

So glad the Netherlands has a relatively functioning system. The majority of the resellers here are actually people who cant go (a startup called Ticketswap limits the resell price to 120% and is the marktleader now). Even Ticketmaster is okay if you just make sure you're online at the time of sale. Plus we have an insane amount of venues for such a small country.

US must be terrible though. Went to see a show in NYC earlier this year and it was quite a different experience.

Long story short, move to the Netherlands I guess

Click to shrink...

Belgium's pretty good in that regard, too. Only show I ever missed was an Alt-J performance that had only 300 seats, which were filled up in seconds. Hardly the fault of the system, there.

Had to sell our tickets to an Imagine Dragons gig last year, and Ticketswap made it quick and easy.

 

[Aztechnology]

They're designed to sell to resellers in bulk. Not only do they allow it, they actively encourage it. Ticketmaster is being sued due to their having a system specifically designed for people to resell tickets on their site after purchasing them, of which they then take greater fees/profits from. They basically used them to circumvent consumer protections and price limitations placed by artists etc.

 

[Shadybiz]

Yep, I absolutely agree.

The other week, I bought "Weird Al" tickets, because my wife has always wanted to see him in concert. It was "Live Nation." It was easy enough to select the seats and check out, but then I somehow ended up paying close to $100 more in fees. Fucking bullshit, but I had to do it. Also, they hit you with like 10 survey questions at the end, and try to tack on a bunch of other stuff (I think like food passes and crap like that).

That was actually my first time buying concert tickets online, and I'd really rather not do it many more times in my life.

 

[Allforce]

I just buy directly from the scalpers anymore for most any ticket. Just no hassle going to to StubHub or whatever and seeing exactly what you're getting.

 

[Engell]

Ticketmaster is getting no money from me .. don't care who is playing

 

[Strangelove_77]

The whole thing is a scam. If I have to use Ticketmaster I'm just not going. Simple as that. Fuck them and their service charges.

 

[Pickman]

Yeah, 15 dollar ticket to see Southern Culture on the Skids had a 12.95 service charge and 2 dollar delivery fee. Literally doubled the cost of my tickets. It's getting ridiculous.

 

[Aurongel]

Any show that sells through Ticketmaster isn't worth the hassle IMO. The entire system is due for a revamp and I can't imagine the venue/labels are thrilled about scalpers making a profit from what they're selling.

 

[Rookhelm]

So why is it that Ticketmaster gets a class action suit for excessive fees and the outcome is that they *add* fees?

12.50 convenience fee per ticket
~$4 per ticket "facility fee" per ticket
4.99 processing fee on the order

I paid $65 in fees for 4 tickets. More than the cost of another ticket. It's insane

 

[Detective Loki]

So why is it that Ticketmaster gets a class action suit for excessive fees and the outcome is that they *add* fees?

12.50 convenience fee per ticket
~$4 per ticket "facility fee" per ticket
4.99 processing fee on the order

I paid $65 in fees for 4 tickets. More than the cost of another ticket. It's insane

Click to shrink...

Hootie and the Blowfish are going on tour and I've never seen them and wanted to.

Lawn tickets were fuckin $80 after $30 on fees. It's ridiculous.

 

[Rebetherick]

Yesterday I worked a night shift 11-6am and saw that FM-84 were playing their first UK gig and tickets were on sale at 9am.
So I stayed up for a few hours to nab some....

Of course the Seetickets site died on its arse (like it did with Glasto) venue was max capacity of 300, sold out in 15 mins, in those 15 mins I simply couldn't get one single ticket, it annoyed me SO much. I was shouting at my wife saying it's 2018 and we STILL can't get ticket websites that don't explode when they actually sell the tickets.

Anyways I decided to go to bed, get some sleep for my late shift again, I woke up to find they had changed to a bigger venue and put more tickets on sale whilst I was sleeping, FFS.

Also I just want to say very clearly, fuck these ticket sites that also own secondary ticket selling sites, absolute scum of the earth.

Click to shrink...

Sucks that you missed out, I had the same issue at 9am also, kept refreshing with no success.

I lucked out as I checked Twitter at about 9:15 and they had tweeted a link to a different site about 10 seconds earlier and I went straight through on the new site and got one.

 

[lenovox1]

So tickets dropped for my SO's favorite band, but she was working at that time so I was ordered to buy them.

Ho-ly shit. These ticket sites are truly scumbags. Every psychological trick in the book is represented here. Constant "Hey buddy, 5000 people are ready to pounce on your ticket, you should hurry up!" and "Woops! Those seats were taken, we MIGHT give you these more expensive seats...", also not showing the final price until you confirm the purchase, leading you to naturally think "Well, I got this far..." even though the price ballooned from the first step.

If the ideal for these experience is you can feel good about your purchase so you return the next time, this is the complete opposite. I feel drained, scammed, I probably aged a year during the process and I never want to do this again. But I will probably have to at some point, and that's probably what they are banking on. Fuck capitalism.

Click to shrink...

Genuinely, would you prefer a lottery system? As in, "Put your email address in, you're now eligible to by tickets if you're chosen in this group," with a group of tickets releasing every half hour or so?

 

[NealMcCauley]

Was buying a ticket for Hugh Jackman in Atlanta and ticketmaster decided to say "Hey you haven't changed your password in a while. Please do so to continue purchase." So that was a ten minute headache waiting for the password reset email and waiting for the system to get me back in queue. All's well now though.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

You need to get in on the presale. That's the only way.

 

[____]

A hearty fuck you to Ticketmaster and it's affiliates. Pre-sale tickets are the only ones that aren't a headache, but the 'attached fees' are bullshit no matter what.

 

[Goldenroad]

Yeah, it causes me a lot of anxiety. Oh well, potentially getting tickets, or not, to see your favorite band(s) is a good problem to have. Better than them being broken up, or worse.

 

[Mr Delabee]

Sucks that you missed out, I had the same issue at 9am also, kept refreshing with no success.

I lucked out as I checked Twitter at about 9:15 and they had tweeted a link to a different site about 10 seconds earlier and I went straight through on the new site and got one.

Click to shrink...

Glad you managed to nab a ticket.
I actually had some in checkout but PayPal payment wouldn't go through on mobile, it said 10 mins before tickets were released again, payment simply wouldn't go through. I then had to watch the countdown timer go to zero.

On the plus side I am sure they will play UK again....one day.

 

[Kaiser Swayze]

I remember the old days of lining up outside Turtles or Coconuts to get tickets to big shows. The best seats went to those who showed up first, not those with the most money.

 

[Vic Damone Jr.]

I hate service fees.

 

[Rebetherick]

Glad you managed to nab a ticket.
I actually had some in checkout but PayPal payment wouldn't go through on mobile, it said 10 mins before tickets were released again, payment simply wouldn't go through. I then had to watch the countdown timer go to zero.

On the plus side I am sure they will play UK again....one day.

Click to shrink...

That's even worse!

Yeah I would say they will especially after having to double the venue capacity, shows the demand for them here.

 

[THE210]

Nothing worse in the ticket world then logging in at the start of a ticket sale only to be offered resale tickets. Like hey Ticketmaster, these tickets have been on sale for 30 seconds how is this possible?

 

[suedester]

Glastonbury is a yearly nightmare.

 

[mhayes86]

So why is it that Ticketmaster gets a class action suit for excessive fees and the outcome is that they *add* fees?

12.50 convenience fee per ticket
~$4 per ticket "facility fee" per ticket
4.99 processing fee on the order

I paid $65 in fees for 4 tickets. More than the cost of another ticket. It's insane

Click to shrink...

No kidding. My wife and I are going to see Penn & Teller next week and the tickets are only $45 each. There's a $16 service fee for each ticket, plus a $4 tax on each ticket. We could pretty much buy another ticket with the additional fees.

 

[Putosaure]

Being somebody working in the ticketing business, not everything is bullshit. For high demand events we can have more than 30000 people hammering our website for the same venue. Seating is also troublesome because in some cases all the ticketing websites share the same pool of tickets so it's a nightmare to deal with in real time.
Good thing you have your tickets though!