

TicketMaster and Live Nation Agree to $2.5 Billion Merger - fallentimes
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/02/10/ticketmaster-and-live-nation-conduct-25-billion-merger-create-live-nation-entertainment/

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jasonlbaptiste
How do you innovate around a potential monopoly like this? If ticketmaster
starts becoming more like a scalper in its operations, then the secondary
ticket market becomes pretty useless. Or, do the ticket prices just increase
even more in the secondary market.

Normally, I'd say this would make ticketmaster RIPE for disruption, but
they're the gatekeepers. You can't get tickets any cheaper than what they sell
them for. If they also interlock with the record labels, it's going to
desperately slow innovation in the music industry around concert tickets and
alt. revenue sales.

Thoughts from the ticketstumbler guys?

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acgourley
I'm afraid you would have to beat them at their own game - making
relationships with each venue (convince them you will help them sell more
tickets, or give them a larger cut).

At its heart its not a technology problem, although you'd have to employ
technology to operate cheaper that ticket master. (Which includes preventing
bots or scalpers from grabbing all the good tickets for hot shows right after
they go on sale).

my 2c

Edit: Perhaps one way around this problem is to provide an easy way for venues
to sell their own tickets. Let them setup their own web-front where they can
sell will-call or even mailed tickets. Allow for features like will-call
ticket transfers. The question is if venues that don't already do this will be
convinced to. I'm not sure what is keeping venues like The Fillmore from using
any web presense other than Live Nation and TicketMaster. Hopefully its just
technophobia, not any actual lock-in...

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greatreorx
Yeah, it is lock-in. Live Nation owns The Fillmore (and 130 odd other live
music sites). So they aren't going to be interested in any web solution you
could come up with. They don't care about any new customer friendly features
because there's no where else for customers to go. If you want to see your
favorite artist, it's not like you can buy tickets to the other show at the
venue across the street the next night.

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fallentimes
Monnnnopoly!

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rms
I think this will get blocked in antitrust. Presumably Obama will be more
active here than Bush was.

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mikebo
I think in the current economic climate it will pass. Ticketmaster/Live Nation
will say the only way they can be profitable is to consolidate.

