I posted this in Chit Chat but wanted people to be aware!!

[TheScoop]

Ticketmaster says TicketExchange shouldn't be considered scalping. It says the site's "goal is to give the most passionate fans fair and safe access to the best tickets."

What a bunch of bull****. The most PASSIONATE fans would be waiting with their fingers on their keyboards at 8:59am, ****head. Not everybody who is PASSIONATE about their favorite artists have the money to spend thousands of dollars on concert tickets. If the system was FAIR as they suggest, then the best seats would be available FIRST. As in at 9:00AM, first row pops up first, second row pops up next and so on and so on. However, we all know that for years, this has not been the case. Long gone are the days when PASSIONATE fans had to camp outside the box office in the hopes of getting the "best tickets". When everything went online, so did the whole "whoever is first in line gets the best tickets" philosophy. This industry is filthy and it's about time this crap is coming out.

I personally have no problem with a broker or a fan who has extra tickets, trying to sell them for a small profit. Hey, if someone is willing to pay it, then so be it. But Ticketmaster is the one doing the markup here. Their "face value" BS is not their asking price. It's been like this for years. If they want to make $500/ticket, then charge $500/ticket from the start. But then make those premium seats available as soon as tickets go on sale for the event. This whole hiding behind the scenes thing is a joke. For years they have hid behind "broker" and have kept all of the best seats to themselves so they can mark them up at ridiculous prices. This is why when they say "so and so artist sold out their show in 15 minutes", I roll my eyes, because I know it is just a story Ticketmaster puts out there to entice those fans who missed out on getting tickets and to welcome them into their world of taking advantage of them and ripping them off for as much as they can get. Ticketmaster are the ones who make the show "sell out" in 15 minutes, not the fans.

Thanks for posting this article.