[ Wall Street Journel ]

This could have a major effect on ticket prices and bookings to venues all over the world.

The critics and anti-trust watchdogs are deeply concerned. Should the fans be?

Checkout some of the feedback from viewers in the comments portion at the bottom of the article.

I like that Southern Yankee idiot - 'your old' and all. What a ponce! I bet that jagoff has plenty of money to go see Britney and Jonas and Miley...and wouldn't bother going to see a bunch of old farts like Bruce or the Stones or AC/DC or U2 or The Who or whoever that requires talent and experience to put on a good show that people go to see every time they tour.

the ticket buying public are getting screwed again with this merger .congress please help!!!

Apparantly, Michael Cohl has recently sold about 40% of his shares in Live Nation.

Turbo-capitalism that rose in the 80's is ALL about monopolism. "Competition drives prices down is a myth" except when it's about outsourcing jobs!

So why should we be surprised? Hope the Pearl jam guys won't have a stroke ove this news!

Quote
The Sicilian
[ Wall Street Journel ]

This could have a major effect on ticket prices and bookings to venues all over the world.

The critics and anti-trust watchdogs are deeply concerned. Should the fans be?

This could make it harder to go see my beloved San Jose Sharks. My boys took a bite out of beantown last night.

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

Quote
sweetcharmedlife

This could make it harder to go see my beloved San Jose Sharks. My boys took a bite out of beantown last night.

See ya Friday the 13th

Quote
The Sicilian

Quote
sweetcharmedlife

This could make it harder to go see my beloved San Jose Sharks. My boys took a bite out of beantown last night.

See ya Friday the 13th

Just bring it...

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

What a coincidence...

10/02/2009 07:17:10


BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - TICKETMASTER HIT WITH $500 MILLION LAWSUIT


Bosses of a leading ticket agency who were forced to apologise to BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN and his fans in a row over sales for the rocker's upcoming tour are facing a $500 million (£342 million) lawsuit over the practice used to sell their tickets.Fans of the Born To Run hitmaker were angry when they were unable to buy certain seats from the Ticketmaster.com website, and were redirected to another agency, TicketsNow, which charged a higher price.
Ticketmaster chiefs apologised for the blunder, promising it wouldn't happen again and offering a refund to any fans who paid over the odds as a result.
But now the firm's heads have found themselves at the centre of a class-action lawsuit which alleges the company is diverting tickets to TicketsNow as part of a "disgraceful" conspiracy to force customers to pay the highest possible price for sporting and entertainment events.
The suit was filed on behalf of Henryk Krajewski of Toronto, who in September (08) purchased two tickets for a Smashing Pumpkins show at Massey Hall from TicketsNow for $533.65 (£365.51). The tickets would have cost about $130 (£89) if they had been available from Ticketmaster.
This resale practice violates anti-scalping provisions laid out in Ontario's Ticket Speculation Act, according to the statement of action filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
The defendants "wrongfully, unlawfully (and) maliciously conspired" to sell tickets at a higher price, alleges the suit, which seeks $500 million (£342 million) in damages for the conspiracy and $10 million (£6.8 million) for punitive damages.
The court documents state, "Ticketmaster and Ticketmaster Canada divert consumer traffic from their websites to the TicketsNow website. This practice is designed to ensure the sale of tickets at the highest price possible price, and, in all cases, at a price substantially higher than the price at which the tickets were first issued.
"Henryk pleads that the conduct of the defendants was high-handed, outrageous, reckless, wanton, entirely without care, deliberate, callous, disgraceful, wilful and motivated by economic considerations," reads the statement.
Ticketmaster has not yet filed a statement of defence.
Ticketmaster purchased TicketsNow last year for $265 million (£181.5 million), and takes a percentage of every resale through the company in addition to the original services charges it levied at the point of initial purchase.




10/02/2009 07:17:10



Also see: Bruce Springsteen

From yesterday glad you have woken up now
[www.iorr.org]