Has the physical sale of tickets disappeared?
There is no other way to buy tickets in person. Online purchases, including via mobile devices, are the standard method today. Physical buying makes up only a tiny slice of sales, about five percent.
We have moved from street queues and open-field lines to virtual queues, where confusion can crop up. We work hard to educate users about how virtual queues operate. When a shopper sees a front-of-line count like 70,000, that means there are 70,000 active sessions, not 70,000 individual tickets. If a system connects ten times, ten people are counted. Each person should open a single session, avoid refreshing, and limit themselves to one login instead of stacking counts. The queue advances in a controlled, orderly fashion. Sales are organized, transparent, and easy to follow, so chaos is avoided because no platform can handle ten thousand simultaneous connections. The goal is clean, visible progress for every buyer.
How do they counter speculation and fraud, two major threats?
Fighting speculation and fraud is a top priority, because the aim is for tickets to reach real fans who want to see their favorite artists. We don’t want tickets to end up on secondary markets where speculation runs rampant, fraud thrives, and artists and fans lose out. A suite of safeguards is in place for organizers and artists, from pre-registration to orderly access, as well as nominal or dynamic pricing. A Fan-to-Fan platform is being launched to let fans buy from each other in a secure, transparent way and then re-sell tickets at fair prices on ticketmaster.es. This marks a significant step forward in reducing exorbitant prices and counterfeit tickets, and the feature will arrive soon.
Bots, ahead of everyone else, public enemy number one?
Investments in technology around the world are aimed at thwarting automated bots that try to grab large blocks of tickets. Bots are a relentless challenge, learning quickly and finding new ways to bypass protections. The system is continuously upgraded to keep crowds safe and fair.
Given the current political attention to these issues, what is the expectation?
In earlier years there was close collaboration with the Ministry of Culture to advocate for laws against speculative sales. The priority is to prevent resale platforms with deep pockets and strong Google presence from misleading fans. Talks with the Ministry will continue to refine these protections and keep fans informed and protected.
Why are concert tickets so expensive?
Ticket prices are not set by Ticketmaster. Organizers and artists determine pricing, especially after the industry faced a two-year pause during the pandemic. Live performances remain a major source of livelihood as physical sales of music have declined. Production costs, staffing, and logistics behind a show are substantial. Market forces of supply and demand influence prices in the short and medium term, and those dynamics tend to stabilize gradually rather than drop quickly.
What about management fees?
Fees are set by the organizer, typically as a percentage of the ticket price. All ticket offices in Spain operate under similar percentages. Ticketmaster’s role is to collect and share a portion with organizers and venues to sustain the investment in technology. The goal is to keep the experience online purchases safe, convenient, and hassle-free, with proceeds reinvested to improve the user experience rather than extracted as profit.
There was an award ceremony at the Independent Music Awards. How did the Palma Auditorium gala come across?
The awards have a fifteen-year legacy, and this year’s gala was well executed and energizing after years of disruption. MIN is now a benchmark in the industry, and attendees felt the event was thoroughly organized and inspiring.
From MIN to MIM, the Association for Women in the Music Industry, what is asked of its members?
All women in the association, which also welcomes men, work to raise awareness in a male-dominated field. Greater visibility and voice are demanded for everyone involved, and the group emphasizes that it is not a small faction but a large community with a shared mission.
Holding a major management post, is female leadership increasing in the music business?
Yes, there are three women serving as CEOs of long-established ticketing companies in Spain. While there is still progress to make, momentum is clear and gains are being made in leadership roles.
How did Ticketmaster perform in early 2023?
The first quarter was strong and promising, echoing a busy year with numerous concerts and significant broadcasts. The year ahead includes continuing duties for last year’s releases and upcoming shows. Next week features two Elton John concerts postponed due to pandemic timing and four Coldplay dates in Barcelona, delivering events to more than 200,000 attendees.