Bruce Springsteen fans were in for a nasty shock when they tried to book tickets for The Boss’s forthcoming tour.
The first six cities on the US leg of the tour went on sale on Wednesday (20 July) – Tampa, Orlando and Hollywood, in Florida, followed by Tulsa, Denver and Boston.
Due to Ticketmaster’s “dynamic pricing”, however, fans saw mid-floor tickets on sale, at face value, for $4-5k (£3-4k).
The ticket-selling platform’s “dynamic pricing” programme is comparable to Uber’s “surge” pricing, which sees prices increase with demand for certain “platinum tickets”, which are placed throughout each venue.
The system responds to demand, increasing or decreasing prices in line with what scalpers would resell them for, keeping the money in-house for the seller and artist.
According to the Ticketmaster website, the goal is to “give the most passionate fans fair and safe access to the most in-demand tickets while allowing the artists and everyone involved in staging live events to price tickets closer to their fair value”.
However, the extortionate prices had fans wondering whether even scalpers would charge up to £4k for a non-front row ticket to a Springsteen concert.
Backstreets, the Springsteen fan magazine, posted a screenshot of the price for a seat on the tour’s opening night, writing: “Tampa mid-floor for $4,400, anyone?”
Also posting a screenshot from the Ticketmaster website, another fan wrote: “I went back into to presale for @springsteen in #Boston and pulled this cute little pair on the floor..... for $5,000. Shameful.”
The Independent has contacted Ticketmaster and Springsteen’s representatives for comment.
Guitarist Steven Van Zandt, a member of Springsteen's E Street Band, is the only member of the tour to respond at the time of writing, saying: “I have nothing whatsoever to do with the price of tickets. Nothing. Nada. Niente. Bubkis. Dick.”
Springsteen’s UK concerts are scheduled for Edinburgh, (30 May), Birmingham, (16 June) and London’s Hyde Park (6 and 8 July).
