Issue under the microscope: Ticket Scalping

This week we discussed the problem of ticket scalping. Ticket scalping is the practice of purchasing in-demand tickets for a show for the sake of making a profit. The scalper has no interest in attending the show, but to re-sell those tickets to fans for a value higher than the original cost price.

It's a greedy way of ripping off desperate fans who will pay extraordinary amounts of money to see their favorite artists in concert. The prices some fans are willing to pay may be hundreds, even thousands of dollars above the original price. Many scalpers operate out of houses filled with banks of computers and use multiple high-limit credit cards to buy tickets in bulk on the first day of sale. They then put the tickets on sites such as TicketsNow, eBay or StubHub.

A couple of examples:
- A-reserve tickets to AC/DC concerts next February for $410 each (cost price $149.90)
- Platinum seats for Simon and Garfunkel's show last month were selling for $1000 each (cost prince $358.50)

Michael Jackson's farewell memorial is a rather morbid example of scalpers cashing in on the superstars death. 1.5 million fans signed up to go into the draw to receive tickets to the memorial - just 8,750 would be chosen. Each person selected received two tickets. Obviously there is an incredible demand for these tickets. The nature of the event meant fans were emotionally vulnerable and willing to fork out whatever it took to be in that arena, watching the King Of Pop's final goodbye. Tickets were found on eBay at crazy prices up to $25,0000! The screen grab above this article sees a ticket going for $10,000. eBay tried to pull these auctions down as soon as they could.

The industry is testing new ways of fighting the problem. Young American sensation Miley Cyrus' concert tour is introducing a paperless ticketing system where attendees do not receive a physical ticket for the event. Ticket holders will be required to present the credit card they purchased the tickets with as well as photo ID. This raises some issues. What if you don't own a credit card? We cannot imagine that many of Miley's pre-teen fans are credit cards holders. Obviously there is the expectation that parents will escort their children into the venue, but what about older teenagers? Can't see them being too keen with the idea of dragging mum or dad to a Kings Of Leon concert in order to get through the door. It's an inconvenience. This system may also lead to pre-show mayhem crowds, as it would most likely become a longer process. Credit card and photo ID checks would surely take longer as opposed to the simple swipe of a ticket.

Green Day's latest tour has introduced new procedures to fight scalping. Ordered tickets will not be available for pickup until the night of the show. Holders of the "will call" tickets must present the original credit card used to order the tickets, confirmation number and photo ID. Once they have their tickets they are escorted directly into the venue. They will not be permitted to leave at any point. Additional box office staff will be in place, as well as additional security to ensure that the process runs smoothly and efficiently. "The concept is, you can't scalp tickets," says Duncan Gillespie of HECFI (Hamilton Entertainment and Convention Facilities Inc). "It ensures the person who buys the ticket sees the concert."

In Australia, only Victoria and Queensland have anti-scalping laws. Scalping has become a big issue for AFL matches. Under Victorian law, it is illegal to sell AFL grand final tickets above face value, but other games are not covered.

Further reading:
1. Ticket Scalping Discussion Paper December 2006
2. Cyrus fights scalpers with paperless tickets
3. Green Day cuts scalpers off
4. Green Day Apply Anti-Scalping Measures For Aussie Tour

Industry News

Asia tests new ways of making music profit

The economic crisis has seen a dramatic downturn in physical sales of music and an increase in illegal downloading. Marcel Fenez of PricewaterhouseCoopers’ entertainment and media practice says that "Consumers are enjoying more hours of music, they just aren’t paying for it". Asia’s physical distribution market fell by 9.3 percent in 2008 – the biggest drop in 5 years. A survey of more than 8,000 young Asians b/w 15 to 24 year olds found only 11% paid for the music they obtained online - Scary statistic, isn't it?

The industry is exploring how it can capitalize on new technology and get paid for music in a completely new way.

Nokia is now offering an "All You Can Eat" music services bundled with its mobile phones. Instead of paying per song, music lovers are allowed to download onto their phone any song they want for a 12 to 18-month period. The cost of the music is factored into the price of the handset.

Another scheme, thought to be previously-unthinkable, that is being tried comes from internet giant Google, in partnership with record labels such as Warner, Sony and EMI. Working with Chinese music site Top100, the project, launched earlier this year, offers Chinese users music that can be legally downloaded for free. It hopes to cash in by attracting more visitors, and then capitalising on that increased traffic through advertising. Doubts remain about whether the venture can lead to real revenues. "We believe that by investing heavily in product innovation, the users will come and then the money will come," said Google China's engineering director Bin Lin at the Hong Kong conference.
Read full article.

Webcasters and music industry reach royalties agreement

Internet radio reached an agreement on streaming-music royalty rates with SoundExchange, the group that collects royalties on behalf of artists and labels. The two sides announced the deal, which comes after more than two years of negotiations, political maneuvering, and fans pleading with lawmakers to save Webcasting. It should be noted, however, that Webcasters are still at a disadvantage when competing with traditional broadcast radio. Over-the-air stations aren't required to pay royalty rates to artists or labels.

Steve Marks, an executive vice president for the Recording Industry Association of America and one of the people who helped close the deal, said the settlement is proof that the music industry wants to partner with technology firms. "Supporting new business models through innovative licensing agreements is critical to the future of our industry," Marks said. "We are pleased to have found an alternative in the hope of avoiding costly litigation in favor of building partnerships."

The agreement calls for large ad-supported radio services, such as Pandora, to either share 25 percent of revenue with the music industry or pay a per-stream rate of 0.08 cent retroactive to 2006, whichever is greater. That rate will increase until reaching 0.14 cent in 2015. Sites that generate less than $1.25 million in revenue must pay 12 percent to 14 percent of sales for streaming rights.
Read full article.

Collapse in illegal sharing and boom in streaming music

New research shows that the number of teenagers illegally sharing music has fallen dramatically in the past year. The survey of 1,000 fans also shows that many 14 to 18 year olds are now streaming music regularly online using services such as YouTube and Spotify.

At the same time less than a third of teenagers are now illegally downloading music, the survey suggests. In January this year 26% of 14 to 18 year olds admitted filesharing at least once a month compared with 42% in December 2007. The research revealed that many teenagers (65%) are streaming music regularly, with more 14 to 18 year olds (31%) listening to streamed music on their computer every day compared with music fans overall (18%).

Paul Brindley, CEO of Music Ally, which carried out the survey with media and technology research company, The Leading Question, said: "These figures challenge the idea that filesharing will just continue to grow. While we don't think for a second that it shows the war against piracy is won, it does at least suggest that there is encouraging news for the music industry." Music fan Dominique Wakefield, 24, said "While I was at uni I started listening to streamed music using MySpace. Bands would be friends with other bands and it was a great way of discovering new music. I don't really feel the need to own all that music, I know it's always there. I still buy the occasional CD, and sometimes use iTunes. If I find myself loving a whole album and listening to it again and again, then I will buy it. But it has to be quite special."

Legal digital sales are also seeing an unprecedented boom, although sales are far from making up from the shortfall created by the collapse of the physical market. Digital singles were up 41.5% in 2008, while physical singles sales plunged 43.5%, according to the BPI. Last year three albums – Coldplay's Viva La Vida, Kings of Leon's Only By Night and Duffy's Rockferry – sold more than 100,000 digital copies, and the impact of digital is nowhere more apparent than in the UK singles top 40, where Michael Jackson has 12 posthumous entries in the current chart.
Read full article.

Queer Spotlight: Adam Lambert

Being a gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered radio station, it was a no-brainer that we would showcase queer talent on Sound Museum. So each week we'll put a queer performer under the spotlight and highlight their professional and personal achievements.

This week we covered a very recent rise-to-fame. Adam Lambert was the runner-up of this year's American Idol season. For many he was favorite to win throughout the competition, but lost out to Kris Allen. With his trademark queer-friendly look of dark eye-makeup and alternative, punk style fashion, Adam was certainly something different for the squeaky clean Idol image, but won audiences over with his soaring vocals and energetic stage presence. He also took on some very interesting songs: "What's Up" by 4 Non Blondes, "Believe" by Cher, "Play That Funky Music" by Wild Cherry, "Black Or White" by Michael Jackson and "Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin were just some of his choices.

His performances garnered critical acclaim each week from the judges. For his second Top 7 performance, Lambert sang "If I Can't Have You", delivering what Kara DioGuardi described as his "most memorable performance", while Simon Cowell described his vocals as "immaculate". Paula Abdul was reduced to tears. In the Top 4, Lambert performed "Whole Lotta Love". Cowell commented, "that was one of my favorite performances... nobody can top that now", while Abdul, punning on the song's title, described Lambert's performance as "a whole lotta perfect".

Questions about his sexuality came to the forefront when photos of him kissing other men, and in drag, began circulating the internet. Adam confirmed the photos where of him, saying he had nothing to hide, but never publicly confirmed his sexuality whilst on the show. Weeks after the finale, he came out publicly on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. He said, "I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear I'm gay... I'm proud of my sexuality. I embrace it. It's just another part of me."

Adam is certainly not the first openly gay man to come from the Idol series. Last year, American Idol Season 2 runner-up Clay Aitken finally came out after years of speculation. In 2006, Australian Idol Season 2 runner up Anthony Callea came out after heavy speculation. See a trend happening here?!? And of course, 2002 UK Pop Idol winner Will Young is openly gay, and has enjoyed continued musical success over the years. Australia also had a drag contestant named Courtney Act make the semi-finals in its first season.

Adam is currently working on his debut album with producers Greg Wells and RedOne, due later this year. We played his gorgeous version of "Mad World" by Tears For Fears on this week's show.

Kiwi Corner

Each week, Johno will run through the latest headlines concerning the New Zealand GLBT community, and play a track by a New Zealand artist.

Headlines:
- Auckland City Council has given out over $262,000 in its Community Group Assistance Fund for 2009, but all four applications from LGBT community groups have been declined. Read article here.
- Last month's glamourous Black Tie Drag Bingo night at Auckland's Hopetoun Alpha venue raised $7,032 for the Cartier Bereavement Charitable Trust - and the Trustees are "thrilled to bits" with the response to the new event. Read article here.
- Around 30 Aucklanders, and also a huge crowd of punters at K'Road's gay Naval and Family pub, participated in this collaborative video by singing along to Lily Allen's "Fuck You". Watch it here:


We played "Cruise Control" by New Zealand pop group Headless Chickens from their 1993 album Body Blow. The single was a number one hit in New Zealand and reached #26 in Australia.

Releases & Touring

Releases in stores this week
Singles
Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling
Lady Gaga – Paparazzi
Albums
Benny Anderson – Story Of A Heart
Sarah Blasko – As Day Follows Night
Abbie Cardwell – Love Motel
Daughtry – Leave This Town
Red Riders – Drown In Colour
Compilations
OST – Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince
Various – Onelove : Smash Your Stereo

Playing this week
Tuesday July 14
ADELAIDE – Ten Tenors (Festival Theatre)
MELBOURNE – Pink (Rod Laver Arena)
MELBOURNE – Pink (Rod Laver Arena)
Wednesday July 16
BYRON BAY – Phrase (Great Northern Hotel)
ADELAIDE – Short Stack (The Governor Hindmarsh)
BALLARAT – Kisschasy (The Arms)
Thursday July 17
MAROOCHYDORE – Phrase (Sands Tavern)
SYDNEY – Pink (Entertainment Centre)
SYDNEY – Ten Tenors (State Theatre)
Friday July 18
ADELAIDE – Short Stack (The Governor Hindmarsh)
BRISBANE – Phrase (The Zoo)
SYDNEY – Hilltop Hoods (Enmore Theatre)
SYDNEY – Pink (Entertainment Centre)

Tickets on sale this week
July 14 : James Hunter (Sydney, Melbourne)
July 14 : Chris Isaak (Perth, Melbourne, Sydney)
July 17 : Wolfmother (Nationally)

In touring news...
- American rock-folk singer Aimee Mann will visit Australian shores for the very first time this year to play gigs in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Ben Lee will provide support for both the Sydney and Melbourne shows.
September 3 : Brisbane (Powerhouse)
September 4 : Sydney (Enmore)
September 5 : Melbourne (Palais Theatre)

- Nickelback have announced an Australian tour. Tickets go on sale Thursday July 23.
November 11 : Brisbane (Entertainment Centre)
November 13 : Sydney (Acer Arena)
November 16 : Melbourne (Rod Laver Arena)
November 19 : Adelaide (Entertainment Centre)
November 21 : Perth (Burswood Dome)

- Beyonce has announced a third show in Sydney for her forthcoming 'I Am' Australian tour. Four of the nine shows have now sold out – one in Brisbane, one in Melbourne and two in Sydney. It’s been announced that US hip-hop star Flo Rida and our own Jessica Mauboy will be support acts for the tour. Tickets for the new September 20 Sydney date, go on sale on Monday July 20.
September 12 : Brisbane (Entertainment Centre) SOLD OUT
September 13 : Brisbane (Entertainment Centre)
September 15 : Melbourne (Rod Laver Arena) SOLD OUT
September 16 : Melbourne (Rod Laver Arena)
September 18 : Sydney (Acer Arena) SOLD OUT
September 19 : Sydney (Acer Arena) SOLD OUT
September 20 : Sydney (Acer Arena) NEW SHOW
September 22 : Adelaide (Entertainment Centre)
September 24 : Perth (Burswood Dome) LIMITED TIX

- Evermore have replaced Faker as the support act for the remainder of the Aussie dates on Pink's 'Funhouse' tour.

- Sydney electro boys Grafton Primary have announced a series of live dates throughout August and September. Tickets for all shows are on sale now.
August 14 : Canberra (The Academy)
August 19 : Frankston (Pelly Bar)
August 21 : Melbourne (Corner Hotel)
August 22 : Hobart (University Of Tasmania)
August 29 : Perth (The Capitol)
September 02 : Armidale (University Of New England)
September 03 : Wollongong (University Of Wollongong)
September 04 : Sydney (The Metro)
September 05 : Brisbane (The Zoo)
September 11 : Adelaide (The Governor Hindmarsh)
September 12 : Gosford (Coaster 2009 Festival)
September 17 : Newcastle (University Of Newcastle)
September 19 : Albury (Indie Music Festival)

Episode 1: 14.07.09 Playlist

1. MGMT – Time To Pretend
Oracular Spectacular, 2007
2. Kylie Minogue – Speakerphone
X, 2007
3. Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor
Evacuate The Dancefloor, 2009
4. Kid Cudi ft. Kanye West & Common - Make Her Say
Man on the Moon: The End of Day, 2009
5. Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah
Hallelujah (single), 2008
6. Little Boots - Remedy
Hands, 2009
7. Adam Lambert - Mad World
American Idol: Season 8 Favorite Performances, 2009
8. Aqua - Back To The 80s
Greatest Hits, 2009
10. Grafton Primary – SOS Hello
Eon, 2008
11. Natalie Bassingthwaighte - Not For You
1000 Stars, 2009
12. Headless Chickens - Cruise Control
Body Blow, 1991
13. Pepsi & Shirlie - Heartache
All Right Now, 1987
14. Daniel Merriweather - Impossible
Love and War, 2009
15. Whitney Houston & Deborah Cox - Same Script, Different Cast
Greatest Hits, 2000
16. Mark Vincent - Time To Say Goodbye
My Dream, Mio Visione, 2009