Ticketmaster strikes again

When you strip away the Recording Industry Association of America's inquisition of 12 year olds, record companies' pursuit of an easy buck and Clear Channel Communication's attempt to rule the proverbial world, you remain with the only pure musical experience left: the concert.\nMy first concert was in 4th grade when I saw "Weird Al" Yankovic at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis, where he opened with "Addicted to Spuds" and closed with "Yoda." \nIn the simplest terms, it was totally amazing.\nI've since had the pleasure of seeing bands like U2 and Radiohead, two bands whose tickets are harder to obtain than an STD at BYU. Like any other big act, their tickets have been gobbled up by scalpers all over the country and resold on eBay for hundreds of dollars. \nBut our friends at Ticketmaster think they have found a solution.\nAccording to CBS News (Sept. 1), Ticketmaster will begin auctioning off the best concert seats in eBay-style online auctions later this year, with no limit to how high the prices can go. What does Ticketmaster CEO and President John Pleasants think? \n"If somebody wants to charge $50 for a ticket, but it's actually worth $1,000 on eBay," he said, "the ticket's worth $1,000." \nTicketmaster's grand plan is supposed to combat scalpers, yet its new strategy currently has no rules on how to keep scalpers out of the auctions. Industry analysts agree this new practice will raise ticket prices as a whole.\nThey took away the fun of camping outside of a ticket booth by instituting the lottery system, and now they're giving the fun to highest bidder. And so John Pleasants and Ticketmaster have officially pissed on our last outlet of pure musical expression by selling off the best seats to the biggest pocketbooks, not the biggest fans.\nWhat Ticketmaster has failed to mention is that many states have anti-scalping legislation on the books that is regularly enforced in order to ensure the protection of consumer interests. So why doesn't Ticketmaster use its incredible power to help establish these policies in states that have not adopted them?\nBecause there is no such thing as too much profit. \nIf Ticketmaster wanted to really look out for its clients and consumers, it could take some advice from Michael Eavis, who owns the land that hosts the Glastonbury music festival, the British equivalent of Woodstock that takes place almost every year. According to one of England's biggest musical publications, New Musical Express, Eavis is currently working to combat scalping for the festival involving a system similar to that used by airports where seats are purchased and then claimed at the venue the night of the show using an ID and an access number, thus eliminating physical tickets and keeping the average concert-goer's wallet in mind.\nThe bottom line is that Ticketmaster will be making a lot more money. It is concealing this disgusting practice under the guise that it is doing the right thing because all of this will ensure that this money will go to promoters, venues and artists instead of scalpers, but in turn it will also be taking the away the chance for a kid to be able to see his or her favorite band up-close. Instead, a 42-year-old lawyer who doubles as an aging wannabe hipster at night, will occupy the seat.\nI give that kid every right to punch that guy in the face.