Oasis Won't Use Dynmic Pricing In The U.S.

"Oasis Calls Ticketmaster's Dynamic Pricing 'Unacceptable Experience for Fans,' Won't Use It for 2025 North American Gigs."

t.ly/DEN6l

Let them get back to me when they find out how much money they left on the table.

Or, they could employ super-high prices like the Stones and not sell out on the on sale date. Then again, do they really want to risk this, I mean how strong is the demand for Oasis in North America anyway, can they sell stadiums at all, and how many?

This is a major screw-up. The customer is not always right. The Gallagher brothers are demonstrating their ignorance here. This is what happens when you're so removed from the market you have no idea what is going on.

What is the price of a concert ticket? WHAT PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO PAY FOR IT!

With so many seats to sell in a stadium, many far from close, it is imperative that there be mania, that demand outstrip supply. As a result, prices cannot be insane, because people won't buy at first. And if it turns out sales are soft this might result in the venue not going clean, which is anathema. These deals, the entire structure of these major tours, is based on the buildings selling out, or close to it. The acts have sky high costs, even worse the promoter has minimal margins. But why don't we just blame it all on Ticketmaster and call it a day?

Do you know that Mercedes G-Wagon? During Covid, they were going for 100k over sticker, if you could even get one. You know why? Crypto bros were loaded with cash, they were the ones who were overspending for these urban assault vehicles.

But subsequent to the crash of FTX, with the crypto future unclear, you can now buy a G-Wagon at sticker. Which is $148,250. No, the G-Wagon is not for everybody.

Nor are concert tickets.

HUH??

But I'm a big fan, I've been listening to the band forever, I'm entitled to be in the building! And since I've listened to the music for years, I'm entitled to get in CHEAP!

Sure, dynamic pricing caused a kerfuffle in the U.K. But the tickets SOLD, because that is what people were willing to pay. And when the show is over almost no one will complain about the price they paid, they got a unique experience, a once in a lifetime experience, that they can boast about and tell the story of for years! I got a ticket and you didn't!

I've got a Royal Oak and you do not. There are all these cultural signifiers. But does Audemars Piguet lower the price? If anything, the company raises the price, even though the watch just tells time, something everybody is entitled to, but not everybody can afford a Royal Oak!

Or a Rolex. Try buying one at an authorized dealer at sticker. Unless you're a regular customer odds are low.

But when it comes to concert tickets! LET ME IN!

You can pay the monthly fee, $11.99 for Spotify, and listen to all the music you want. It's a commodity. But not concert tickets. WHICH IS WHY THE PRICE HAS GONE UP!

So when Oasis sees their tickets at multiples of face value on the secondary market after the on sale is completed, what, are they going to be HAPPY?

Or, they can be completely duplicitous and just scalp their own tickets, which has been done for ages. Hell, that was what Lyte was doing for festivals!

The bottom line is no one can fix an exact price for a concert ticket before it goes on sale. If it turns out you priced it too low, you want to be able to raise it!

Oh, there's a way to combat this, by tying the ticket to the customer. There are even systems in place that will allow you to sell your unused tickets for face value before the show plays. BUT THE PUBLIC DOESN'T WANT THIS, BECAUSE THE PUBLIC WANTS TO SCALP THEIR OWN TICKETS!

So Oasis is caving to these fans whose loyalty is to their wallet as opposed to the band? That's crazy.

If you think the fans have clean hands here, you're wrong.

Concert tickets were underpriced for eons. Now that they've gone up... Once again, that comports with demand.

Furthermore, if you tie the ticket to the buyer, limiting the number each individual can purchase, you run the risk of not selling out. Once again, the mania helps sell the tickets, which is why Taylor Swift put up her entire tour up at one time. But somehow Ticketmaster ended up as the villain there and Swift got off scot-free.

Oasis should take the hip-hop view. That you've been screwed by the man and every dollar you can garner is evidence of your success. Isn't that why Oasis was successful to begin with? A working class act with attitude?

The fact that we're having this discussion at all is just crazy. It's almost like politics in the U.S. Two teams with two different sets of facts, forget the truth.

So you've got the acts and the public and rather than look at the truth of the situation, that there are more buyers than capacity, that the acts take almost all of the revenue, that without fees the entire enterprise doesn't fly, they just say screw it AND BLAME IT ALL ON TICKETMASTER!

It'd be like Trump and Harris being in cahoots and blaming it all on Smartmatic. Hell, didn't Fox already try that?

Ticketing is so complicated that even the bands don't understand it. They don't know where the fees go, they don't know what a fair price is, but I haven't met a single performer who has not been pissed that their tickets are listed on the secondary market for far more than the face value. Because they don't get a single cent of the uplift, the scalper does.

And what did the scalper invest?

Now the truth is not every gig sells out. If you can't sell most of the building, they pull down your tour, expenses are just that high.

But if the demand is there...

Let's be clear, the Gallagher brothers are reuniting Oasis for the money. It's not like there's a new album or anything. It's a dash for cash. And they're going to forgo some of this money?

NO WAY!

They'll wake up.

Let's hope so, otherwise their ignorance will create a free-for-all where the average person can't get in at the listed price because the tickets are so cheap, the secondary market will hoover them all up and sell them at sky high prices!

Oasis thinks it's solving a problem? IT'S CREATING WORSE PROBLEMS!

If you charge what the tickets are worth, fans get in, and the act gets all the money. Isn't this what you want?

You'd think so. But someone must be blamed for the fact that everybody who wants to see Oasis can't get in for cheap and let's lay that at the feet of TICKETMASTER!

LOL.

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Breaking Records

Is there anybody interested in record company news who doesn't work for a label?

What we've had in the last twelve months is financial engineering. The disappearance of Capitol (they call it a merger, what next, a comeback?), and the elevation of supposedly internet-savvy Elliot Grainge to the head of Atlantic, as if music were some sort of Billy Beane enterprise, while jobs are eliminated and...

The only people pleased are on Wall Street. That's what this is all about.

Remember the eighties and nineties, when new labels were being launched, everything from Interscope to Giant? That's where the money was. Get those damn videos on MTV, ship those overpriced CDs and then roll in dough. What should we say now, we haven't had that spirt here since 1999?

Never has an industry been so out of touch with its customer base.

In the heyday of Napster we heard that acts were going to have to make a living on the road, little did we realize the road would eclipse recordings, even for the most successful acts. Never mind that those at the bottom of the food chain have to focus on the road, because streaming revenues are so bad.

Meanwhile, the labels have circled the wagons, cut costs and declared victory. Huh?

The biggest story of the summer is Chappell Roan. Who's been recording for a decade, whose first label, the aforementioned Atlantic, dropped her. Furthermore, her breakthrough was not predicated on anything the label did, but her opening slot on a Olivia Rodrigo tour.

As for Sabrina Carpenter, she's been at it for fifteen years. And she was built by Disney, not one of the big three label groups. As for her road business... There's always been demand for hot acts, will this sustain or is it flavor of the moment? It's not like we haven't seen this before, in the heyday of the aforementioned MTV. The faster you made it, the faster you fell.

And opening for other acts is not a new paradigm. Louis Messina's been doing it for years. Kenny Chesney opened for George Strait, Ed Sheeran opened for Taylor Swift. But country is a different market, and Sheeran is a once a decade talent/superstar.

Then again, all the action is in country. Sure, it's still controlled by radio, but it seems to be offering something that "pop" music does not. Humanity, singability, connection with an audience...

But we keep hearing about hip-hop acts and divas. And Kendrick Lamar has been at it over a decade and no one wants a new Mariah Carey.

But the major labels are paralyzed by a commitment to an era and a paradigm that have expired.

There is no MTV. As for the Video Music Awards, that used to be a cultural rite, now it's a sideshow promoted by the nearly dead network and those who believe an appearance will make a difference, which it really does not.

So where does this leave us?

With a ton of wannabes dying to play the old game, become instant stars, and road dogs slugging it out not only day by day and month by month, but year by year. And many of these acts will never break through via recordings. Not that their songs won't matter. But it's more akin to the Grateful Dead than even Coldplay, whose first album came out in 2000 with its hit "Yellow," when despite all the hoopla about Napster on college campuses, most people at home didn't even have a high speed connection.

So you've got to lay many eggs, put out many traps and wait for years to see if anything happens.

Yet the major labels think they can force it, make it quicker. Get lucky.

No one controls social media, NO ONE! Anybody who tells you they can make a track go viral is lying. Futhermore, it can go viral on TikTok and there's still no demand for the band/act.

It's not like we've never been here before. Albeit without the power of terrestrial radio. Major labels put out a lot of records, not made for zillions of dollars, and continued to nurture the acts hoping they'd break through. Mo and Joe at Warner Bros. were famous for this.

We need a complete retooling.

And in truth, the marketplace has retooled. It's just that the major labels have not. The majors are signing and releasing ever fewer records massaged for hits. Composed and remixed by committee. That's movies, television, not music. Music is about the vision of the artist. Sure, commerce is key, but sans artistry you have a business, not an art form. That's how it was before the Beatles, and that's how it is now.

The majors hope they can hoover up anybody who has a hit individually. By offering tons of bread. But the acts worth signing don't fit their game. Never mind their recordings not throwing off a ton of revenue. Now being an act is more holistic. The labels may have initiated the 360 game, but the new acts have embraced it, and they own their recording rights. But even more, they know that recordings are only part of the puzzle.

Music will never die, because of the hunger of people to hear it and the ease with which it is made. But its power in the marketplace waxes and wanes. Music today is like GE, or some other corporate titan, which peaked and everybody keeps trying to achieve that same peak without retooling.

GE was broken up down to nothing. The company was not prepared for the modern era.

The labels have their catalogs. Otherwise, they'd already be out of business. They control the greatest hits of recorded music history.

But those hits were made in a different world, a different marketplace.

Hell, movie studios can't even open most movies these days. Despite all the marketing. Never could hype be so ignored.

As always, innovation comes from the outside. And there's no outside inside. No free thinking.

There's tons to talk about regareding the road.

There's almost nothing to talk about with the labels.

Yet the labels get all the press.

Something will happen. But it will be a surprise.

The reason there's been little innovation in the recorded music sphere is because there's just not that much money in it right now. And the real money is in brand extension. Yes, income inequality killed the music business. The best and the brightest, the educated, those who think outside the box, don't go into music, there's just not enough money to be made.

But the power of music is undeniable.

We're not looking for he or she who can garner the most revenue, but those who can touch our heart, change our life. And just because something is a hit that does not make it so.

So keep talking about the executive turntable, the changes in structure. They've got nothing to do with music.

Actually, the biggest record company story of the past week is Universal UK CEO David Joseph leaving the company to get a master's degree in religion and theology. We've never seen a move like this before, NEVER EVER! Leave the circus? Almost unheard of. You get squeezed out, you don't leave.

But one doesn't have to know Joseph to decode that he was looking for meaning he was no longer finding in recordings. More soul fulfillment.

And the truth is the public is looking for this too.

But that's a much harder game than assigning the usual suspects to massage someone with little talent into a star.

A game the majors are unprepared to play, not that they even want to, not that they're even aware of it!

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Sept. 30 - Beyoncé tries on Levi’s | Gatorade, Chips Ahoy test new Gopuff ad features

Gatorade, Chips Ahoy among brands testing Gopuff’s new ad features; New brands jump at endorsement deals with influencers, celebrities: study; Privacy laws raise questions for advertisers: Here’s what the numbers say View online | Signup

Daily Dive Sept.​ 30,​ 2024 | Today’s news and insights for marketing leaders   BROUGHT TO YOU BY — Roku CTV Ads Made Simple 47% of US streaming time is on Roku. Engage viewers on the platform they know best with Roku Ads Manager, a new self-service ad platform custom-built for CTV performance. Learn more here.   Levi’s gets nostalgic with Beyoncé in first chapter of new campaign “Reiimagine” will reinterpret several of the brand’s iconic advertisements, starting with the singer’s gender-flipped take on the 1985 spot “Launderette.” Gatorade, Chips Ahoy among brands testing Gopuff’s new ad features The delivery service has beefed up its platform to help brands connect with Gen Z and millennial consumers whether in-app, in-bag or off-platform. New brands jump at endorsement deals with influencers, celebrities: study Cosmetics and skincare brands are the leading category for endorsement deals, followed closely by non-athletic apparel and footwear. Sponsored Content by Uptempo Your Blueprint for Marketing Planning Success Overcome chaotic planning with a strategic blueprint that aligns goals, optimizes campaigns and endures measurable impact for your organization. Start with these 7 steps. Privacy laws raise questions for advertisers: Here’s what the numbers say A majority of advertisers have changed their strategies to comply with new legislation, while nearly half have adjusted their number of data partners. Read more news How to Use Graphics to Elevate the Customer Experience Eye-catching signage and graphics have the power to grab the attention of both new and returning customers. Explore top tips for resource-crunched marketers looking to innovative in signage in this infographic. Access Now From Our Library Industry Report The Challenges and Opportunities of Mobile App Marketing Custom content for Branch Virtual Event Playback How to Navigate and Capitalize on Retail Media Networks Trendline The impact of generative AI on marketing strategies Supported by Grammarly Trendline Inside the marketing strategies of major brands Supported by Kantar Playbook Why Retail Media Might Be Right for Your Brand Custom content for Acronym View all resources What We’re Reading The Wall Street Journal DirecTV Agrees to Merge With Satellite Rival Dish Ad Age Paramount may drop Nielsen—what it means for advertisers Digiday The rise, stall and fall of Oracle’s advertising business Suggest a story we should read Dive Into a Topic Brand Strategy Mobile Creative Social Media Video Agencies Data/Analytics Influencer Marketing Ad Tech CMO Corner Share Marketing Dive: Daily Dive and get rewarded. You’ve referred 0/10 readers. Share your link: https://www.marketingdive.com/signup/insiders/?signup_referred_by=5b0544e291d15c374412ca76

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