Steve Wynn declares war on ticket brokers

[dean_siu]

“They say they are representing the fans?” he said with a quick laugh. “Well, Garth Brooks and I don’t think so. I wonder if he (Adler) believes he’s helping the fans when he’s talking to himself in the mirror. Scalpers were selling tickets online for $700 the day of sale. Garth wants to protect his fans, and I’m with him. We don’t want them exploited. The price is $125, and nobody but us and Garth Brooks are going to make money.

“I’m jousting with ticket brokers. They are not going to sell them at a profit. Tough (stuff).”

http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-r ... anization/

[flipflopgirl]

NICE!!!!!!!!!

[dean_siu]

Wynn officials have sent a warning to ticket brokers stating, “It has come to our attention that you are representing yourself as a licensed ticket broker for the purpose of reselling tickets for the Garth Brooks concerts at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas. Please be advised that you have not been authorized as a licensed ticket broker by Wynn Las Vegas, and you are not authorized to resell any Garth Brooks tickets for his concerts at our venue.” Wynn also said his agents reserve the right to cancel any ticket at any time.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-r ... back-wynn/

[dean_siu]

Here's more on the battle Steve Wynn is having with ticket brokers......

Wynn Wages War on Scalpers: Anyone who purchased tickets for the first run of sold-out Garth Brooks shows faces some serious obstacles to actually attending the event. Those who bought tickets on October 24 was given a deadline of October 27 at 12 p.m. (PT) to supply the name of every guest in their party or risk immediate cancellation of their orders. Prior to the deadline, the resort was reaching buyers via phone calls and e-mail notices, which asked for the completion of an online ticket reservation verification form.

Even after supplying the names of all guests in a group, ticket holders will face additional challenges on the day of the show. Every member of a party must present a valid photo ID that matches their reservation in order for tickets to be tendered. IDs will be checked a second time as the ticket holders enter Encore Theater for the performance. These measures are all aimed at thwarting ticket scalpers.

This could interesting as people buying tickets from brokers will surely be turned away at the door if Steve Wynn follows through with his plans.

[ragtopW]

Here's more on the battle Steve Wynn is having with ticket brokers......

Wynn Wages War on Scalpers: Anyone who purchased tickets for the first run of sold-out Garth Brooks shows faces some serious obstacles to actually attending the event. Those who bought tickets on October 24 was given a deadline of October 27 at 12 p.m. (PT) to supply the name of every guest in their party or risk immediate cancellation of their orders. Prior to the deadline, the resort was reaching buyers via phone calls and e-mail notices, which asked for the completion of an online ticket reservation verification form.

Even after supplying the names of all guests in a group, ticket holders will face additional challenges on the day of the show. Every member of a party must present a valid photo ID that matches their reservation in order for tickets to be tendered. IDs will be checked a second time as the ticket holders enter Encore Theater for the performance. These measures are all aimed at thwarting ticket scalpers.

This could interesting as people buying tickets from brokers will surely be turned away at the door if Steve Wynn follows through with his plans.

just curious has to how that is going to be enforced??
most of the brokers have hard tix.. are they gonna track
tix sent to an address that for some reason has a red flag??
or tix bought with the same CC??
<< the scalper in me

[surfpirate]

Interesting.

So let me see if I've got this right. I'm at the box office and I want two tickets for a show. I like to pay with cash so as to keep from running up a credit card debit. I also like to *stay off the grid* as far as THE MAN and BIG BROTHER are concerned, if you get my drift.

You'll accept my cash for the two tickets but you still need my name and address for your database? I don't want to give you my personal information for your database, I'm paying cash, take my money, give me my tickets and leave me alone will ya?

What? You need the name of my date to the show as well? And HER ADDRESS too? But, but, I don't even know who I'm asking to go with me yet! I mean I thought about asking that cute girl next door but I don't know if she'll say "yes". What if I give you her name but she breaks the date and I have to go with my mom instead? Will you let my mom use the ticket?

Yeah. Good luck enforcing this *policy*.

And just imagine the lines getting into the show when everyone and their date are showing picture IDs at the door.

[RinglingRingling]

will call, proof of id to go with the credit card for the purchase, UV handstamp. need both handstamp and ticket to get in the door.

[pair8head]

That dog won't hunt

[SchoolGirlHeart]

I applaud the effort to keep brokers from gouging fans, but I won't be coughing up my personal information any time soon to attend a concert....

So if I buy a ticket for, say, my sister, and she can't make it, so I bring my other sister or a friend, they can't get in? BS. I'd love to see Garth, but draconian measures like this mean I won't be seeing him any time soon....

[msu#1]

Good for them,

we can all complain about scalpers and brokers but when it comes down to, the artist is the one who can stop it.

If you dont like the policy then dont buy tickets.

[surfpirate]

If I want to see Garth Brooks in Vegas it's a pretty sure bet I'm not going to be able to buy my tickets at the venue when they go on sale (a week or a month before the show), give them my name, address and the name and address of everyone in my party (my "date") and then return a month later to attend the show (making sure my date and I both have our photo ID).

In this case, more than just about any other example I can think of, a Ticket Broker would absolutely be my best choice to get a ticket. The venue is small (1500 seats) and Vegas is a travel destination for 99% of the persons that would attend the shows.

I can't use a Ticket Broker to help me get seats to show I want to see when I travel to Vegas next week or next month? I have to buy them all myself the day they go on sale? I may not even know on the day they go on sale that I'll be traveling to Vegas.

Can I use a Travel Agent to get my airline tickets and hotel reservations too? They provide similar services.

Can I still use the concierge service at my hotel? They help me get tee times at the local golf courses as well as dinner reservations and tickets to area attractions and shows. I don't know the area so I use their services.

I guess my point is this ...... there are benefits and services provided by Ticket Brokers. They are appreciated and obviously used by a portion of the concert/sports attending community. It's not a perfect system and there are abuses, but I like having the option. Sometimes I have the commodity of "time/effort" to obtain my tickets myself and sometimes I don't.

[chippewa]

Good for them,

we can all complain about scalpers and brokers but when it comes down to, the artist is the one who can stop it.

If you dont like the policy then dont buy tickets.

Exactly. There have been shows where only certain credit cards are accepted, and for a long time my local TM seller only took cash. Those are the rules, I can play by them or stay home. If I book an airline ticket or a cruise, I already have to let them know who is using the ticket and provide ID at entry -- what's so different about a concert ticket?

[Glorfindel7]

My problem isn't with the brokers trying to make money (by selling a ticket for a few dollars more than they paid for it)... My problem is when they try to make an OBSCENE amount of money by buying up all the tickets and then selling it for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars more than they paid for it because of supply/demand.

But it's a tough sell trying to check everyone who bought a ticket. Far better would be to ask ticket seekers to help police the ticket resellers themselves by lodging complaints against the sellers prices with the venue....

(Again, I would expect to pay about 150 dollars for a 125 ticket from a broker, but 700 is a bit much, especially when Wynn and Brooks will NEVER see this money....)

[RinglingRingling]

My problem isn't with the brokers trying to make money (by selling a ticket for a few dollars more than they paid for it)... My problem is when they try to make an OBSCENE amount of money by buying up all the tickets and then selling it for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars more than they paid for it because of supply/demand.

But it's a tough sell trying to check everyone who bought a ticket. Far better would be to ask ticket seekers to help police the ticket resellers themselves by lodging complaints against the sellers prices with the venue....

(Again, I would expect to pay about 150 dollars for a 125 ticket from a broker, but 700 is a bit much, especially when Wynn and Brooks will NEVER see this money....)

which is the crux of the stance... if they were making the $700 per seat, they'd be happy. Granted, they lose the ability to claim they are in it for the fan, and they lose the impression they are trying to help.. but it's all about who gets the revenue stream.

[brahmafear]

The whole concert ticket thing has gotten way out of hand. That being said get tickets off online sources and go back to when we used to camp out to get the best tickets, eh? (I realize we're all spoiled by the convenience of the internet etc but it's a thought) That's just my humble opinion.

[surfpirate]

The whole concert ticket thing has gotten way out of hand. That being said get tickets off online sources and go back to when we used to camp out to get the best tickets, eh? (I realize we're all spoiled by the convenience of the internet etc but it's a thought) That's just my humble opinion.

Still my favorite way to get tickets. Sometimes the *camping out* with fellow fans aspect is as much fun as the actual event.

[Nighthawk]

My problem isn't with the brokers trying to make money (by selling a ticket for a few dollars more than they paid for it)... My problem is when they try to make an OBSCENE amount of money by buying up all the tickets and then selling it for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars more than they paid for it because of supply/demand.

But it's a tough sell trying to check everyone who bought a ticket. Far better would be to ask ticket seekers to help police the ticket resellers themselves by lodging complaints against the sellers prices with the venue....

(Again, I would expect to pay about 150 dollars for a 125 ticket from a broker, but 700 is a bit much, especially when Wynn and Brooks will NEVER see this money....)

Why is it your problem that someone would spend that amount to see Garth.

Garth is far worth more 125 a ticket for a huge venue. I was expecting tickets to be over 200. Few years back, I had a line on tickets for some of the Kansas City shows. Let me tell ya ---thats a real tourist destination in the WINTER. I had a line on 3rd row seats for $2000 a piece. I was ready to spend it on it because the gal I was seeing really wanted to see Garth, and she never had. Me seeing Garth a handful of times already, didn't flinch at that price because I knew it was well worth it.

[Bicycle Bill]

I was ready to spend it on it because the gal I was seeing really wanted to see Garth, and she never had. Me seeing Garth a handful of times already, didn't flinch at that price because I knew it was well worth it.

So what you're saying is that you had 'ulterior motives', eh? OK for you, but when I went to see Jimmy at Alpine Valley this August, it cost me roughly $50.00 for a ticket for lawn seating.

The concert (it was my first) was OK for the price, but I can't see paying >$100.00 to see anybody ... unless it was Jesus Christ making his second coming. Assuming that most of us earn around $15.00/hour (which btw is dambed good money), paying $150.00 for tickets to see anybody means we have to work a minimum of TEN HOURS (pre-tax) to see a two-hour show. Or to put it another way, Alpine Valley has a capacity of 37K, which means that at $35.00 per ticket a sell-out concert by Jimmy will gross something like 1.3 MILLION DOLLARS (and for that matter, it will gross even more since pavilion tickets sell for roughly $135.00 each). Offhand, I can't think of anybody who is worth that kind of money for a two-and-a-half hour show — especially when you add the 'service charges' and 'convenience fees' to the base ticket prices.

There will always be people who will pay any amount for tickets to something; but in the light of today's economy that demographic is shrinking rapidly. Jimmy, Garth, and others need to reprice themselves back into the pocketbooks of their average fans, not just the high-rollers.

-"BB"-

[CaptainP]

My problem isn't with the brokers trying to make money (by selling a ticket for a few dollars more than they paid for it)... My problem is when they try to make an OBSCENE amount of money by buying up all the tickets and then selling it for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars more than they paid for it because of supply/demand.

But it's a tough sell trying to check everyone who bought a ticket. Far better would be to ask ticket seekers to help police the ticket resellers themselves by lodging complaints against the sellers prices with the venue....

(Again, I would expect to pay about 150 dollars for a 125 ticket from a broker, but 700 is a bit much, especially when Wynn and Brooks will NEVER see this money....)

MY problem is when they claim to be "reselling" tickets that fans are "stuck with" and "can't use"...but have them on sale BEFORE the show actually goes on sale, and at a 500% markup.

[oceanstate]

I think a lot of this is hot air.

Back in June, when the rumors first started flying about a potential Garth deal, and Garth had the "test concert", the story on the street was that Garth was exceptionally concerned about the cost of tickets for shows in Vegas, and didn't want to become an act which was so overpriced his historical fan base (which he didn't mind dumping when he pulled out of the recording/concert business years ago) couldn't come see the act.

So Steve is having to make a lot of noise about keeping the price low.

Oh...and he also bough Garth a jet so he could whisk back and forth to the ranch in Oklahoma.