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Ticketmaster & The Secondary Ticket Market

Google Ticketmaster Secrets. I've never read the book, and don't intend to. But there are snippets here and there about how the secondary ticket market works.

Here's how I buy tickets. Gone are the days when people mostly lined up for tickets. You can still line up--such as at the box office or a physical ticketmaster outlet. But as someone else mentioned, they are all hooked up to the same computer, so you are better off in the comfort of your own home, sitting in front of your computer, refreshing the page starting about a minute before the tickets go on sale until you get in. (I just got 5th row tickets to Steely Dan at the Beacon Theater in NYC this way, and this after there already had been an earlier fan club presale) Yes, you will have to pay all the convienence charges. But when a ticket costs over a hundred bucks, what's another $15? Now of course you should get a Ticketmaster account. It's free to open one, and when you will avoid having to fill out numerous forms in "under 2 minutes" or "under 1 minute" to get your tickets. Sometimes fan clubs have presale codes. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't--depends on what kind, and how many, seats have been set aside for the presale. Also, I have scored great seats the day of the show--seats that were set aside for VIP's or industry people who ended up not going. These can be available both at Ticketmaster and at the box office.

I also buy tickets on ebay or broker's sites such as Stub Hub or TicketsNow. I have had good luck. I shop around. I bought a ticket to the upcoming Police concert at MSG for face price on ebay. Got lucky, I guess--bidding started at face and no one else bid. (I have since recieved the ticket and it is genuine.)

Whether or not Ticketmaster is in bed with ticket brokers, I don't know. But brokers have been around a long time. While you or I might buy a few tickets every year, they are in the business every day, and I suppose one learns the tricks of the trade. For one thing, I'm sure that they are armed with speed dialers to get in the system first.


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