Ticketmaster's New Bidding System

I have a love/hate relationship with Ticketmaster. I love them because I can get tickets to out-of-town shows without leaving home. I live in a smallish city, so not many shows are right in my backyard. So for this reason, I think Ticketmaster is wonderful. As for the 'hate' part, well, they are making it harder and harder for me to get decent seats to any show.

Ticketmaster has implemented a new system to auction off the best seats in the house to the highest bidder. I have mixed feelings about this. Ticketmaster hopes to keep more of the good seats out of the hands of scalpers and online ticket brokers, who routinely resell tickets at outrageous prices, and put them back in the hands of the fans. This is a good thing, of course, but I'm not sure this is the way to do it.

Each summer I take my daughter to see The Wiggles. We usually meet up with friends and make a mini vacation out of it. My experience with ticket purchases has been mixed. I got front row a few times, while just a few days ago, I couldn't find two seats side-by-side for upcoming Rhode Island shows, and had to purchase a bunch of singles.

I understand that brokers and scalpers believe they are just making a living, but they are making a living off of someone else's hard work. When I buy a ticket, I want that money to go to the performer, the crew, the venue, and/or the promoter: the people who have earned it. This is my hard earned money, and I don't remember that broker doing anything to earn my money, except tick me off.

When it comes to taking children to shows, the price adds up. The Wiggles definitely keep their prices affordable, but when a family is buying four or five seats for a show, that adds up quickly. The face value of the tickets is more than enough for a family to pay. When the brokers get their hands on them, you might as well forget it.

When I purchased three tickets for a Philadelphia show a few years back, I was pleasantly surprised that front row tickets popped up on my screen. Shortly after, a news story was circulating about how high the bids on eBay were going for Wiggles tickets. I took a quick look through the listings and found seats right next to mine going for a thousand dollars.

Now back to Ticketmaster. Their plan might not be a bad one, but it certainly eliminates the luck of stumbling upon front row tickets for the average person. Luckily, not all artists are getting in on this gig. So far, tickets for The Wiggles have not been auctioned on Ticketmaster. I really hope it stays that way. If you are a fan of Mariah Carey or the Red Hot Chili Peppers, however, you better be ready to pony up the dough for good seats.

What worries me is that this system, as well intentioned as it may be, is that it will backfire on Ticketmaster. There is nothing stopping the ticket brokers from bidding on those very tickets, and jacking the price up yet again. Pretty soon, you are going to have to sell your first born to view a concert without the aid of binoculars.

It's a valiant effort, but I'm afraid it may only kick up ticket prices to unreachable levels for the average person, and discourage people from going to live shows. I'm not sure, but I can see it happening. All I know is that, as much as I love the Wiggles, I'm not paying 600 dollars a seat, even if it's on the stage. I simply can't afford it, and in the long run, that kind of money is better spent on my daughter's college fund.

Quite frankly, I am convinced nothing short of strict laws prohibiting the resale of any tickets above the face value of the ticket is going to help. Someone, somewhere, will find a way around any new system, and find a new way to make money from it.

Right now, because the Wiggles have not opted to use the bid system, the summer concerts are still on. I fear the day when she outgrows The Wiggles and wants to see Hillary Duff, or whoever the performers of tomorrow will be. I may have to get a second or third job, or maybe, we'll all just stay home.