Ahead of some tickets going on sale Wednesday, the band said on their official website that they “intentionally priced tickets to benefit fans” in order to “block scalpers and limit high resale prices.” Ticket prices started as low as $20.
“The Cure negotiates all ticket prices and, aside from a few Hollywood Bowl charity spots, there will be no ‘platinum’ or ‘dynamically priced’ tickets on this tour. See you there!” they wrote.
However, fans hoping to catch the 30-date “Lost World” tour in cities from Boston to Tampa have complained that reasonably priced tickets online are being inflated after processing and administration fees are added, which often exceed the ticket price. themselves.
One fan tweeted charged a service fee of more than $90 for four tickets worth a total of $80 and called the surcharges “ridiculous.”
In response to fan outcry, Smith vowed to continue the platform in a series of signature all-caps style tweets.
“Today’s failure of Ticketmaster ‘fees’ sickens me as much as all of you. To be clear: the artist has no way to limit them. “I asked how they were justified,” he said tweeted Wednesday.
“We have the final say on ticket prices for this upcoming tour,” he said addedto prevent costs from being “immediately and alarmingly distorted by resale.”
A day later, Smith broke the news to Ticketmaster, saying he had agreed to a partial refund.
“After further discussion, Ticketmaster agreed with us that many of the fees were too high and offered a $10 per ticket refund for some verified fan transactions and a $5 per ticket refund for others as a gesture of goodwill. Fans who bought tickets will receive an “automatic refund”. addedand future ticket sales will receive lower commissions.
Ticketmaster did not publicly comment on the matter and did not immediately respond to The Washington Post’s requests for comment.
It is an encouraging precedent, though not a substitute for necessary regulation. Artists take note: When you speak (with both confidence and nuance), you can create new things. https://t.co/H1tCZdlaZv
— Future of Music Coalition (@future_of_music) March 16, 2023
Fans of The Cure welcomed the news online.
“Thanks to you and the band for being so considerate of your ticket prices… You’ve offered great prices on tour tickets for our fans and we appreciate it.” said one individual.
“You’re amazing – I hope other bands follow in your footsteps!” said other.
Bill Pascrell Jr. (D.J.) tweeted his support on Thursday for the result. “Help Robert Smith and The Cure fight Ticketmaster’s exorbitant fees. Now Congress needs to show those pillars and reform the ticketing market.”
Ticketmaster has been in hot water in recent months after fans of various artists complained about overcharges and glitches.
The issue came to a head last year when fans of Taylor Swift reported widespread problems buying tickets for her ‘Eras’ tour, prompting Ticketmaster to cancel the public sale. Company later apologizedA “surprising number of bot attacks” and “unprecedented traffic” to their site caused problems with their website.
Swift has called the case “serious,” and some of her fans have filed a lawsuit against the company alleging fraud, misrepresentation and multiple antitrust violations, which Ticketmaster denies.
Also in Europe, fans hoping to enter the annual Eurovision Song Contest were outraged earlier this month after reports of technical problems with Ticketmaster left them without tickets, they said.
The company has come under pressure from US regulators to prove it best serves fans and artists after consumer groups and senators from both parties accused the company of using its “monopoly” power to dominate ticket sales and survive. the events industry is something the company strongly denies.
In his State of the Union address in February, President Biden called for a broader end to “junk fees” to ensure “companies stop stealing from us.”
“I know how unfair it feels when a company overpays you and gets away with it. Not anymore,” he said, outlining plans for a law to prevent unwanted payments. “We will cap service fees for concert and sporting event tickets and force companies to disclose all fees up front,” he added. “Americans Are Tired of Playing for Pumps.”
On its official website, the company said its customers – including venues, sports teams and event promoters – “determine the number of tickets sold and set the face value” and service, handling and delivery fees are “jointly determined”. our clients.”
However, he noted that sometimes, as with airline and hotel tickets, “the price of the ticket and commission may be adjusted over time based on demand.”
For now, Smith admits the system is “far from perfect.” and this “The reality is … a lot of fans are going to miss out on whatever system we use.”
