Rolling Stone recently analyzed a developing trend in summer tours, currently undergoing a meltdown and concluded that high-priced tickets are a prime culprit. Nosebleed ticket prices for superstars – and festivals, for that matter – are killing attendance at shows.
“If they continue to rip everybody off, it’s going to be the kiss of death,” Harvey Goldsmith told an audience at Musexpo in Los Angeles in late April.
Overpriced shows, overpriced contacts, and lots of cancelled dates are pointing to a music business sector in serious trouble.
Pali Research analyst Richard Greenfield questioned whether the music industry was “screwing up the last good part of its business,” while shifting the blame for nosebleed tickets onto artists, agents and managers. Â This is a group that “keep[s] pushing for higher and higher guarantees from touring companies such as Live Nation and AEG… in order to compensate for recorded music sales declines,” according to Greenfield, who recommended softer demands to make the fan experience more affordable.
