Michael Rapino, president of US events company Live Nation Entertainment, has commented on the recent ticketing controversy for The Cure’s upcoming North American tour. The CEO confirms that Live Nation will cover the cost of refunding erroneous ticketing fees in the US.
The Cure around Robert Smith had previously decided against the dynamic (i.e. continuously increasing) price system of “Ticketmaster” in an effort to keep the costs for the fans low: Dynamic means that prices increase depending on demand. Smith called this “a kind of fraud”. However, some fans reported that the “Ticketmaster” fees (including the service fee, handling fee, and order processing fee) would exceed the price of the actual tickets. Smith called it “disgusting”.
Rapino is now making statements about this for the first time and explains the situation in a two-hour podcast conversation.
“Live Nation” CEO on the ticket problem: “We give the fans their money back”
In the “Bob Lefsetz” podcast, Rapino says, “We were actually proud of Ticketmaster’s website. We’ve done a lot of work with Robert, making sure that the tickets are non-transferrable (…) and that we’ve done everything in our power to offer fans good ticket prices.”
In the interview, he addresses incorrect ticket sales: “However, for example, there were screenshots from a venue that wasn’t even a Live Nation venue – and showed a ticket service fee of $20, where the ticket itself was only $20. It doesn’t matter if justifying the service fee is a good idea or not, we have an industry where we need to rebuild some credibility.”
He then admits, “I couldn’t justify in any version that we would add a $20 service fee to a $20 ticket. We decided that we’re going to spend some money, give the $10 back, and put it somewhere sensible for the fans.”
Rapino: “Concerts are a high art that has its price”
Then, in the podcast talk, he’s asked if it’s “reasonable to expect to see The Cure in an arena for $20,” as Smith had previously attempted. “No,” Rapino replies. “I think concert pricing in general walks a fine line: yes, we want to make it accessible, but it’s a fine art that comes at a price.”
It is a business in which event companies could ask for a bit more. “It is about [im Falle The Cure] a great two-hour performance that only happens every three or four years in this market. You really shouldn’t set the prices too low. Low- to middle-income people will also be heading to the arena for this special night.” Rapino justifies his claim by saying that real fans are willing to pay high prices, even those inflated by dynamic pricing, because they see “concerts as a really special moment in their lives”.
Does inflation also affect ticket prices?
During the two-hour conversation, Rapino also clarified that ticket prices are not set by his company, but mostly by the artists themselves, and that on average 80 percent of service fees go to the venue and not Ticketmaster.
He also spoke about the impact of inflation on ticket prices overall, as the cost of fuel, labour, lighting and transportation has pushed prices up 19 percent since 2019. Rapino called the ticketing industry “misunderstood”. However, he acknowledged that there are areas for improvement, citing the use of “all-in” ticket prices (where fees are factored into the total ticket price), retaining “platinum tickets” and the reduction of fees for smaller artists.
More about The Cure
The “Shows Of A Lost World-Tour” starts on May 10th in New Orleans, Louisiana, and includes a total of 30 performances. The last one will be held in Miami, Florida on July 1st.