If you're of a certain age, you might remember when shopping for concert tickets meant going to the window outside the concert hall, putting down a few dollars, and getting handed your change. Outside, nervously looking to and fro for the approach of security, were those marvelous beings known as scalpers. Maybe you're a generation younger than this, in which case you might still recall buying a ticket from the one stand-alone company that specialized in their sale.
Each scenario is gone with the bread-loaf sized cell phone. There isn't just one big company waiting to sell you a ticket, but numerous companies. That scalper has also been replaced by several online resources.
1994 marks the year the world changed. Three massive rock tours by legendary bands took place that year, raising prices unheard-of levels - up to $100. What truly changed things, though, was that for the first time the same tickets were being sold at different prices depending upon nothing but the purchasing venue.
Generally, this new complexity can be broken down into two broad streams. Join one of the several self-selected groups who, as a benefit, receive access to tickets before they're broadly released. Or, sit back till the days before show time, waiting for someone to resell a ticket they've already purchased.
To exploit the first broad possibility, you'll want to be alert to when a given act is coming to your town as soon as it's announced. Then join that artist's fan club. Most, though not all, artists will charge a fee to belong to their fan club. However, artists reward their fans by giveaways, which include giving them prerelease access.
Similar early access is available through the concert venue itself, which will often offer presale packages as a benefit to its season ticket holders. Then, some credit cards actually sponsor music tours themselves, and offer presale access to their cardholders. Then there are online services that "blast" information about upcoming tours, as well as options to purchase prior to the general release.
Since some ticket prices have gone upwards of one thousand dollars, there are some luxurious packages available. They include nights for two at posh hotels near the show. They include getting to meet the artist or artists backstage after the show. Or, you can simply have dinner and drinks catered to your box seat.
Another option is to wait till just before the show, and see what might have become available. This is traditionally the role of the scalper, and there are still plenty of these, though you're more likely to find them on social media than on the street. His role, meanwhile, has gone high-tech and become a normal part of shopping. There are websites now specifically oriented to re-selling tickets.
This maddening situation is tolerated by the public, so it will continue. Indeed it will fester, with new methods emerging all the time. It might be a shame that Wall Street skills are necessary just to go shopping for Toronto concert tickets, but thus is our brave new world.
Each scenario is gone with the bread-loaf sized cell phone. There isn't just one big company waiting to sell you a ticket, but numerous companies. That scalper has also been replaced by several online resources.
1994 marks the year the world changed. Three massive rock tours by legendary bands took place that year, raising prices unheard-of levels - up to $100. What truly changed things, though, was that for the first time the same tickets were being sold at different prices depending upon nothing but the purchasing venue.
Generally, this new complexity can be broken down into two broad streams. Join one of the several self-selected groups who, as a benefit, receive access to tickets before they're broadly released. Or, sit back till the days before show time, waiting for someone to resell a ticket they've already purchased.
To exploit the first broad possibility, you'll want to be alert to when a given act is coming to your town as soon as it's announced. Then join that artist's fan club. Most, though not all, artists will charge a fee to belong to their fan club. However, artists reward their fans by giveaways, which include giving them prerelease access.
Similar early access is available through the concert venue itself, which will often offer presale packages as a benefit to its season ticket holders. Then, some credit cards actually sponsor music tours themselves, and offer presale access to their cardholders. Then there are online services that "blast" information about upcoming tours, as well as options to purchase prior to the general release.
Since some ticket prices have gone upwards of one thousand dollars, there are some luxurious packages available. They include nights for two at posh hotels near the show. They include getting to meet the artist or artists backstage after the show. Or, you can simply have dinner and drinks catered to your box seat.
Another option is to wait till just before the show, and see what might have become available. This is traditionally the role of the scalper, and there are still plenty of these, though you're more likely to find them on social media than on the street. His role, meanwhile, has gone high-tech and become a normal part of shopping. There are websites now specifically oriented to re-selling tickets.
This maddening situation is tolerated by the public, so it will continue. Indeed it will fester, with new methods emerging all the time. It might be a shame that Wall Street skills are necessary just to go shopping for Toronto concert tickets, but thus is our brave new world.
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