SoCal dates from Wolf Parade, Jonas Brothers, Ozzfest added to Live Nation’s $10 sale roster
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Much has been made over the last few years of the declining value of the album and song, what with 99 cent downloads and $2.99 digital albums on Amazon.com. But maybe it’s time to start talking about the rapidly declining cost of the concert ticket. Days after Live Nation executives confessed that concert ticket prices are too high, the company continued to ramp up its low-priced ticket promotions.
So, the good news: Fans of the Jonas Brothers and Wolf Parade, and dozens of other acts, can snare $10 tickets to upcoming Southern California shows for one day only -- Tuesday. The bad news: If you’ve already paid, say, $57.98 for two Wolf Parade tickets for July 31 at the Wiltern, you’re out of luck. The Live Nation fire-sale discount is even greater for the Jonas Brothers, where two of the cheapest seats to the act’s Sept. 19 Irvine date would normally cost $99.70.
Perhaps its not surprising to see a tribute to Journey given the $10 treatment ($9.99 too high, if Pop & Hiss were asked, which it wasn’t), but also included in the promo is Ozzfest’s Aug. 14 gig in Devore, where the two cheapest tickets would normally run a fan $79.
One needn’t look much further than Live Nation’s own presentation to Wall Street last week to get some insight into the motivation behind such promotions. With the concert biz facing a slow summer, Live Nation has noted that North American concert attendance is down 3%, and sales at its Ticketmaster division are trending down 11%. When all is said and done, the company projected that 2010 sales for the top 100 touring acts could be down more than 15%.
A bright spot for the company has been its “no service fee” sales. The company noted that previous one-day discounts to $10 fueled a 7,000% increase in daily sales. The fine print states that $10 will be available only while “supplies last” during a 24-hour period beginning July 20.
The bigger question, however, is whether the frequency of such promotions will permanently change consumer buying habits, forcing fans to wait to the last minute and forever question the cost of tickets.
A full list of Live Nation’s $10 promotions is available after the jump.
--Todd Martens
Detour Live, House of Blues, Anaheim, Thursday
Pesado, House of Blues, Anaheim, Friday
Hollywood Live, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Friday
Pesado, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Saturday
Katchafire, House of Blues, Anaheim, Saturday
Squeeze, Gibson Amphitheatre, July 28
Aerosmith & Cheap Trick, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, July 29
Tainted Love, House of Blues, Anaheim, July 29
As I Lay Dying, Hollywood Palladium, July 31
Wolf Parade, the Wiltern, July 31
Andrea Nickatina, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, July 31
Dahga Bloom, House of Blues, Anaheim, July 31
Rick Ortiz Presents, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 4
Pat Green, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Aug. 6
Rolling the Stones & Aeromyth, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 6
Roman Alexander, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 7
Detour/Skinnie Magazine Present: IE Warped Battle, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 9
Meat Loaf, Gibson Amphitheatre, Aug. 12
Cedric the Entertainer, Gibson Amphitheatre, Aug. 13
Lights (A Tribute to Journey), House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 13
Ozzfest 2010, featuring: Ozzy Osbourne, Mötley Crüe, Rob Halford, Black Label Society and more, San Manuel Amphitheater, Aug. 14
Hepcat, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 14
Ted Nugent, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Aug. 17
Panteon Rococo, House of Blues Sunset, Aug. 21
Panteon Rococo, House of Blues, Anaheim , Aug. 25
Lynyrd Skynyrd, Gibson Amphitheatre, Aug. 26
Moenia, House of Blues, Anaheim, Aug. 26
KIX, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Aug. 27
Moenia, House of Blues, Sunset Strip, Aug. 28
Alejandro Fernandez, Gibson Amphitheatre, Sept 3
Led Zepagain, House of Blues, Anaheim, Sept. 3
Secondhand Serenade, House of Blues, Anaheim, Sept. 4
Hanson, House of Blues, Sunset Strip Sept. 17
Jonas Brothers, Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Sept. 19
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