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Beware! Ticketmaster are up to their old tricks!
They were repeatedly offering "best available seats" at the NEC in Block D - went to the Ticket factory instead & got Block C Row 5!
How long before Ticketmaster's 'best' start to appear on their touting site?

indeedy - usually about an hour, going by previous experience......

They really do take the piss any which way they can... they just charged me £3.00 delivery (on top of the £7.50 service charge) for the privilege of printing out my own tickets! That's the same price as the delivery fee for posting them...??!

Hi there

I couldnt get any seats at 9.10 am this morning via Ticketmaster but went via the NEC and I am also in Block C - see you there

Went straight to Ticket factory run by the Nec and got B block 2nd row seats!!! No rip off like Ticketmaster!

Please ,Please, go direct they have great reputation.

Loved Manchester and London hope Brum is a sgood!

Lo and behold! 'Best available' seats at the O2 are now up for sale at between £400 and £600 apiece, on Ticketmaster's own touting site, Ticketexchange.
This activity is nothing short of criminal!

Yeeesssss!! Tickets booked - Block 16, baby. Can't believe this - back from Amsterdam a few days ago and now I'm going to see the great man again. Ah, bliss.....

https://www.theticketfactory.com/online ... hen%200811

They are selling tickets for the show in Rotterdam, but this show is not official on sale yet.
They ask 170 euro for a single ticket, which is way too much (I think they are gonna cost 50 - 70 euro). So don't buy from these guys.

terry shute wrote:Beware! Ticketmaster are up to their old tricks!
They were repeatedly offering "best available seats" at the NEC in Block D - went to the Ticket factory instead & got Block C Row 5!
How long before Ticketmaster's 'best' start to appear on their touting site?

It's not often I feel the need to defend Ticketmaster, usually quite the opposite in fact. However, in this case, I don't think they can be criticised for offering lesser seats than the Ticketfactory. The Ticketfactory is the NEC group's own box office. They sell most of the tickets for the venue but they do give allocations to other agencies, including TIcketmaster and Seetickets. They decide what those allocations are going to be so sometimes Ticketmaster has better tickets than the official box office - I've bought front row at the NEC from Ticketmaster before now - and sometimes the seats on offer are worse. They will almost invariably sell out before the Ticketfactory because they only have a limited number of tickets available and they will not be able to engage in any "premium" ticket shenanigans on this occasion.

Wendy

i cant complain too much about ticketmaster this time ,after poor seats in dublin i showed more bravery and rejected the first few seats they offered at the nec and got block b ""praise ticketmaster"" for once anyway!

terry shute wrote:Beware! Ticketmaster are up to their old tricks!
They were repeatedly offering "best available seats" at the NEC in Block D - went to the Ticket factory instead & got Block C Row 5!
How long before Ticketmaster's 'best' start to appear on their touting site?

You won't be sitting very far from me then!
I came home from the concert at the 02 on Thursday night and was so blown away that I ordered the tickets for the NEC on Friday.

Mabeanie1 wrote:

terry shute wrote:Beware! Ticketmaster are up to their old tricks!
They were repeatedly offering "best available seats" at the NEC in Block D - went to the Ticket factory instead & got Block C Row 5!
How long before Ticketmaster's 'best' start to appear on their touting site?

It's not often I feel the need to defend Ticketmaster, usually quite the opposite in fact. However, in this case, I don't think they can be criticised for offering lesser seats than the Ticketfactory. The Ticketfactory is the NEC group's own box office. They sell most of the tickets for the venue but they do give allocations to other agencies, including TIcketmaster and Seetickets. They decide what those allocations are going to be so sometimes Ticketmaster has better tickets than the official box office - I've bought front row at the NEC from Ticketmaster before now - and sometimes the seats on offer are worse. They will almost invariably sell out before the Ticketfactory because they only have a limited number of tickets available and they will not be able to engage in any "premium" ticket shenanigans on this occasion.

Wendy

You have not been on to Ticketmaster then i take it?
Look at the prices an then think if they are not up to an shenanigans!

Ticketmaster are crooks, period. Their latest scam appears to be something called "Get Me In" where you "buy seats from other fans - just like you" (Oh yeah?!). Basically, they are just breeding a new generation of touts (as are Seatwave etc). And of course. cream a large percentage of the profits off for themselves. On "Get Me In" they are already "selling" seats at nearly three times the price for the second Brighton concert, even though the concert hasn't been cornfimed, and they haven't yet received the tickets. Personally I would use Ticketmaster only as a last resort. Better even to buy from a tout who at least acknowledges that he is one!

John E

I suspect the way that Ticket Master operates is something like this. They advertise tickets on "Get Me In" before the show is officially announced and offer guaranteed seats at rip-off prices. When the tickets become available they sell a handful at straight prices, so that a few legitimate fans will announce that they have got good seats. The concert will then supposedly sell-out instantly, hence generating a state of panic. Tickets will then be channelled through their "Ticket Exchange" and "Get Me In" scams at ludicrous prices, because people have a false sense of value. Ticketmaster will naturally cream-off massive profits. Then, shortly before the concert TM will release (at normal prices) best seats that they have been holding back or not able to sell through their scams.

I totally agree with you, John, and all the other people who are complaining about Ticketmaster's tricks. I actually tried to see if the Office of Fair Trading could do anything about their obvious scams, but apparently it's all legal. All's fair in love and war and Ticketmaster, it seems. 'Everybody knows that the deal is rotten'...