?In the spring of 1975 a trio of neophyte businessmen backed an old
Chrysler onto a sun-baked Arizona driveway and convened in their new
office. The garage start-up, dubbed Ticketmaster, would come to achieve
such market dominance over the following decades some critics would
denounce the company as an unlawful monopoly. Yet its path to the top
was far from inevitable and Ticket Masters analyzes the legality and
ethics behind the actions of Ticketmaster, including its recent merger
with Live Nation. Ticket Masters, based on first-person interivews with
the key players, is a character-driven story that explores the actions
and impact of the iconoclasts guiding Clear Channel, Ticketmaster, Live
Nation, SFX, MusicToday, and StubHub, while folding in related tales of
trustafarians, scalping syndicates, old-school music promoters, and
would-be Internet tycoons. Ticket Masters answers such questions as:
Just what is included in a service fee and why does it vary with the
price of a ticket? Why am I forced to pay for parking when I'm taking
public transportation to the concert? and Who really pockets all of that
money? This guide to the concert industry looks into cubicles,
conference rooms, and booking agencies and includes interviews with
promoters, musicians, and corporate executives with connections to both
Ticketmaster and the bands. Special attention is paid to the touring
activities and ticket-selling practices of the Grateful Dead, Pearl Jam,
U2, Dave Matthews Band, and the Rolling Stones.
