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Why scalpers can get tickets

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Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#241

Post by mattmaroon »

Scalene2 wrote: post #213
mattmaroon wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not with digital ticketing. No ID is necessary. It is a rotating code so you can't just ship someone a screenshot. You have to have the Ticketmaster app, logged into your account. Unless scalpers want to start giving away their entire Ticketmaster accounts, it would stop it easily.

They already sell accounts along with tickets.

Yes, because TM isn't trying to stop them. It'd be fairly easy. Hell, make you use Apple Wallet or Google Pay. Then you'd have to sell the phone too.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#242

Post by rtpg »

josephcsible wrote: post #4

Why do the organizations putting on events like these leave so much money on the table? Why don't they just charge the market-clearing price themselves, leaving no room for scalpers to make any profit?

Because while the point is to make money, the point is not to maximize the earnings for tours. Instead, it's to make enough to make it worthwhile, while giving fans "what they want". Artists care about doing fun/good/cool stuff!

This is similar to stuff like auctions to have dinners with certain successful people. Those people have many dinners where they don't ask for a bunch of money from the participant, because then they would only have boring dinners!

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#243

Post by emodendroket »

charcircuit wrote: post #194
nerdjon wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then the view of greed falls on the organization and the artists instead of on scalpers. It also is up in the air of the market value is really what people are paying or if it’s being inflated by scalpers. Some people will pay it but I don’t think it’s an accurate view of what the price should be in that situation. But we saw exactly this with the recent Lorcana release. Local game stores acted like scalpers charging…

>It also is up in the air of the market value is really what people are paying or if it’s being inflated by scalpers Then use some form of a Dutch auction to sell them.

When you consider how fashion- and trend-driven music is the optics of tickets getting slashed in price because they haven’t sold for a month are terrible.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#244

Post by LadyCailin »

charcircuit wrote: post #194
nerdjon wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then the view of greed falls on the organization and the artists instead of on scalpers. It also is up in the air of the market value is really what people are paying or if it’s being inflated by scalpers. Some people will pay it but I don’t think it’s an accurate view of what the price should be in that situation. But we saw exactly this with the recent Lorcana release. Local game stores acted like scalpers charging…

>It also is up in the air of the market value is really what people are paying or if it’s being inflated by scalpers Then use some form of a Dutch auction to sell them.

Dutch auction + no reselling, or only reselling at the exact price bought or lower. Otherwise scalpers just buy them all as soon as they’re released, and now they do whatever kind of auction they want, with the (previously) max price as the floor.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#245

Post by Analemma_ »

emodendroket wrote: post #232
rs999gti wrote: post #226

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Simple fix then, ban reselling. The artist and TM still get the revenue, but the scalper gets inventory they can't move. What about the fans? Similar to airlines, let people buy standby tickets, at the event, check attendance, if there is space let the stand bys in. TM still gets paid twice, scalper has garbage, and fans get in. What about fans who can't go? Buy the insurance at checkout, if you can't go the insuranc…

That would just return them to the status quo ante where scalpers sell through third parties.

If you tied tickets to names and required ID at the venue (allowing refunds in case you couldn't make it), this wouldn't work and scalping would basically end overnight. The fact that neither Ticketmaster nor the performers nor the venues has ever taken this simple step is the proof that it's not in their interest to do so.

Note that events where the promoters are actually interested in having people show up instead of in scraping for every dollar (e.g. PAX) do this, and it works fine.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#246

Post by emodendroket »

Analemma_ wrote: post #245
emodendroket wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That would just return them to the status quo ante where scalpers sell through third parties.

If you tied tickets to names and required ID at the venue (allowing refunds in case you couldn't make it), this wouldn't work and scalping would basically end overnight. The fact that neither Ticketmaster nor the performers nor the venues has ever taken this simple step is the proof that it's not in their interest to do so. Note that events where the promoters are actually interested in having people show up instead…

Or proof that getting in would take much longer if they did that. Anyway, there are legitimate reasons someone might want to resell, like no longer being free on the event date, so I’m not sure even legitimate buyers would prefer such a strict system.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#247

Post by patrickscoleman »

rs999gti wrote: post #226
iambateman wrote: post #215

I think there’s a massive point which gets missed on this question… A lot of these tickets get resold on the platforms themselves. If a reseller buys the ticket, and then sells it again to the end user, Ticketmaster gets paid twice. This point results in at least hundreds of millions in revenue. Now, if one of the platforms “cracks down” and makes it harder to buy and sell people will prefer another platform. So plat…

Simple fix then, ban reselling. The artist and TM still get the revenue, but the scalper gets inventory they can't move. What about the fans? Similar to airlines, let people buy standby tickets, at the event, check attendance, if there is space let the stand bys in. TM still gets paid twice, scalper has garbage, and fans get in. What about fans who can't go? Buy the insurance at checkout, if you can't go the insuranc…

Also actual fans sometimes can’t make a show and need to resell their tickets

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#248

Post by tornato7 »

hedora wrote: post #102
tornato7 wrote: post #38

IMO, Comic Con has done a pretty fine job at eliminating scalpers. They do this in a few ways: - Random selection over an hour at ticket sale time that is unique per device, with some 'are you human' checks along the way to make it more difficult to bot. - Requiring physical delivery of the badge with a maximum number per address, or government issued ID to pick it up in person. - Random ID checks during the con. - T…

If they wanted to eliminate scalping, they could just make the tickets returnable but non-refundable: Put your name on the badge. If you want to sell it, they buy it back at face value minus a restocking fee, and then resell it at original price. This would be much less of a pain in the ass for everyone involved.

That is indeed how it works at comic con. But mind you, SDCC is a non-profit so they're not so strongly incentivized to promote reselling.

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#249

Post by bko »

rs999gti wrote: post #226
iambateman wrote: post #215

I think there’s a massive point which gets missed on this question… A lot of these tickets get resold on the platforms themselves. If a reseller buys the ticket, and then sells it again to the end user, Ticketmaster gets paid twice. This point results in at least hundreds of millions in revenue. Now, if one of the platforms “cracks down” and makes it harder to buy and sell people will prefer another platform. So plat…

Simple fix then, ban reselling. The artist and TM still get the revenue, but the scalper gets inventory they can't move. What about the fans? Similar to airlines, let people buy standby tickets, at the event, check attendance, if there is space let the stand bys in. TM still gets paid twice, scalper has garbage, and fans get in. What about fans who can't go? Buy the insurance at checkout, if you can't go the insuranc…

This is only a problem because concert venues want to charge below market price and have the scalpers take the heat while they get their cut both ways. You can’t magically get around the market price. If you price too low you’ll have scalpers. If you beat the scalpers you’ll just have not enough tickets and a few people get tickets at below market value. Maybe that’s more fair but if you’re a fan that doesn’t feel comfortable buying tickets to a concert a year in advance, it’s likely you’re not going to be able to go at any price.

People just don’t want to deal with the reality that the Taylor swift tickets that start at $40 or whatever were never real to begin with

Re: Why scalpers can get tickets

#250

Post by envsubst »

scott_w wrote: post #67
josephcsible wrote: post #4

Why do the organizations putting on events like these leave so much money on the table? Why don't they just charge the market-clearing price themselves, leaving no room for scalpers to make any profit?

Because, ironically, a show that only rich people can afford to attend will be pretty terrible. Rich people tend not to loudly enjoy the show, so the atmosphere isn't there. This is bad for the rest of the audience and for the performer. It's hard to put 100% in when all you can see is a bunch of people staring solemnly at you. It happens in football (soccer for my American friends) for clubs like Man Utd (and probab…

> Rich people tend not to loudly enjoy the show, so the atmosphere isn't there

Citation needed.

Rich people are the main audience at all organized events of all kinds. Do you think you can take you and your kids to an NFL game if you're poor? The main attendees of Taylor swift? Women in late 20s - mid 30s working corporate jobs.

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