Proof, if proof were needed that those at the top live truly live on a different planet to the rest of us comes from Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino, who has said that concert tickets are “underpriced”. Really.
Speaking at CNBC and Boardroom’s Game Plan conference, Rapino was comparing concert tickets to sports events. “Music has been underappreciated," he said. "In sports, I joke it’s like a badge of honour to spend 70 grand for a Knicks courtside (seat). They beat me up if we charge $800 for Beyoncé.”
“We have a lot of runway left. So when you read about ticket prices going up, the average concert price is still $72. Try going to a Laker game for that, and there’s 80 of them. The concert is underpriced and has been for a long time.”
Rapino did admit that ticket prices are going up, but suggested that this was because production for stadium and arena shows was becoming more elaborate - “We just did Beyoncé’s tour. She’s got 62 transport trucks outside. That’s a Super Bowl she’s putting on every night. Ten years ago, there might’ve been 10 trucks.”
Whilst it’s certainly true that production at the top end has gone up a level, that’s a separate issue to the sky-high fees, dynamic pricing and the ongoing issues with the secondary market that cash-strapped punters have to contend with.
Some would say that Rapino’s comments show a startling lack of sensitivity. It’s no secret that since Covid, inflation has driven up costs, leading to higher-priced tickets, which wages have not kept pace with.
And whilst among the A-listers – your Beyoncés and Taylor Swifts – demand is still very much holding up, there are signs that even mid-range artists are now struggling to make touring pay.
Last year, Jennifer Lopez, Pink, Justin Timberlake and the Black Keys all had to cancel, postpone or downsize tours when they found the demand wasn’t there. Meanwhile, last week, Garbage announced that they were retiring from touring because “the economics have become untenable”.
But things – at least in the US – could soon shift. Rapino was speaking a day before last week’s announcement that the Federal Trade Commission had filed a suit against Ticketmaster (who are owned by Live Nation) for hiding fees from customers, and allowing scalpers to buy more tickets than they are allowed, before letting them resell those same tickets on Ticketmaster’s own resale platform.
On top of this, there is an ongoing antitrust suit that the US Department of Justice filed against Ticketmaster/ Live Nation last year, accusing it of acting as a monopoly. Rapino’s words could well come back to haunt him.
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