Despite average concert ticket prices being up over 20 percent since 2015, Live Nation and Ticketmaster say concert tickets are actually underpriced.
Per MarketWatch, Michael Rapino, the Chief Executive for Live Nation Entertainment Inc., told Liberty Media Corp. investors during a recent presentation that concert tickets are actually an “incredible bargain” when compared to other entertainment options. Joe Berchtold, the president of Live Nation, said to MarketWatch, “The vast majority of shows are very reasonably priced for fans,” despite bigger headlining acts often bring up the average ticket price due to their higher prices. The average concert ticket price in 2019 was $96.17. In 2015, it was $78.30.
Berchtold said that amphitheater lawn seats tend to be priced in the $30 range, while the overall average amphitheater ticket costs $48 according to the aforementioned Liberty Media Corp. investor presentation. Berchtold also said the profit gains from the secondary market “…is proof that concert tickets are too cheap.”
Live Nation is currently part of an investigation from the House of Representatives regarding various practices involved with “high, hidden fees” that account for nearly a quarter of the cost of a concert ticket’s face value. AEG, Vivid Seats, TicketNetwork, Tickets.com, and StubHub are the other ticketing companies at the center of the House investigation.
