[w10-1]

I think a few providers, particularly with high fixed assets like venues, will always dominate in pricing power over many buyers (same for oil companies). The difference between oil and events is that they're elective (not a real need) and almost never substitutes (you don't go to one performer instead of another due to price). So providers really have the incentive to avoid competition (just as movies used to avoid coming out the same weekend). Altogether this drives towards provider coordination if not consolidation.

As others have pointed out, high prices and additional fees are just extracting higher prices, which is good for the providers financially.

The more interesting question is: since ticketmaster has a monopoly, why have price tickets at all?

The most efficient way to maximize price is the auction (assuming you can eliminate re-selling), particularly the dutch auction which reduces signaling.

With auctions, the performer takes no reputational hit for the outrageous price. Losing fans would have to blame the winning fans.

Also, you get a lot more information about the market, and could see softening demand or specific preferences (to, e.g., increase or decrease the luxury boxes).

That also tracks the winners/loser zeitgeist in the US, where people want to signal that they're in the 1%/10%.

My few concerts were real milestones in my life, but they were always the first shows of a great performer, relatively intimate and cheap (and always pure luck). I wish others could have that experience instead of the overpackaged hyper-produced events of today (required to support the high venue investments).

[tyre]

People would revolt if there were auctions, because it would make it impossible for many people to attend live events. Right now there is the hope that you can, even if that’s most not true.

For example, I did the Amex presale for US Open tickets. There were 22k people in front of me for regular day passes during the earliest rounds. So we end up with an auction-ish situation anyway, via the resale market, but can blame scalpers.

The thin illusion keeps it palatable enough, if only barely. Ticketmaster is wants to extract the most profit. Being hated is fine. Being regulated because you’re _too_ hated is not.

[kalleboo]

For some artists in Japan we do lotteries. There's an application period and then the opportunity to purchase is doled out randomly among the applicants. You can often apply for multiple tickets together if you're a group, but ID is checked at the venue for the purchaser so you have to arrive together, making resale more awkward. Usually there are multiple rounds to sell the tickets when nobody paid - some times an early round for fanclub members.