GARTH BROOKS TO PLAY DOME
Province looks at tackling scalpers
The last time Garth Brooks came to Calgary, it took 58 seconds to sell out 15,322 seats in the Saddledome, with thousands of fans left with no choice but to pay a massive markup for tickets.
On Wednesday, Brooks announced he and his wife, Trisha Yearwood, would make their first appearance in Calgary since the 2012 show, performing Sept. 9 at the Saddledome, the last Alberta stop on his three-year tour.
But just hours after the tour stop was announced, generating a wave of excitement on social media, online ticket sellers were already marketing tickets for the show, every one of them listed at well above the $80 (including tax and service charge) price tag, more than a week before they officially go on sale to the public next Friday.
It’s an all-too-common refrain every time a major entertainer comes to Alberta, and one that’s struck a discordant note with Service Alberta Minister and Calgary MLA Stephanie McLean.
“I’ve been following this issue closely and it’s something as a consumer that bugs me, too,” she said.
Public outcry in Ontario last year over tickets for the Tragically Hip’s farewell show going largely to online resellers prompted the provincial government to enact legislation that makes the use of so-called bots to purchase tickets illegal, as well as putting caps on tickets up for resale at no more than 50 per cent above the original price tag.
McLean said she’s been watching not only the efforts in Ontario but also New York State, which last year criminalized the use of scalper bots, already resulting in US$4.2 million in settlements from seven companies accused of illegally selling tickets to events, some of them through the use of bots. She said the Alberta government is preparing its own public consultation in the coming weeks that will help guide the province as it looks at how it deals with the irksome issue.
That stance is a marked departure from the previous Progressive Conservative government, which essentially legalized scalping after ditching the Amusements Act in 2009. In 2014, a Service Alberta spokesman told Postmedia that outlawing such practices would be impossible to enforce.
In February, Brooks performed nine sold-out shows at Rogers Place in Edmonton, adding the additional performances in an effort to outstrip demand and ensure fans wouldn’t have to pay a king’s ransom for tickets. During Brooks’ last Calgary stop in 2012, he expressed disdain for scalpers and vowed to make a return.
“I don’t like scalpers and I never have. I understand we’ve all got to make a living but there’s other ways to make a living,” Brooks said at the time.
But Brooks’ antipathy toward scalpers hasn’t stopped online middlemen such as StubHub from continuing to act as a clearing house for tickets. On Wednesday morning, the ticket reseller was advertising 126 tickets for Brooks’ Calgary show, ranging in price from US$188 to $1,750 apiece.
StubHub spokesman Cameron Papp said a large number of ticketholders have access to events prior to the general public, often before a performance is even announced, and they turn to resellers in hopes of making a profit.
“We do know there have always been industry insiders who have access to tickets before they ever go on sale,” he said.
In the past, the company has estimated only between 20 to 30 per cent of public seats are available when tickets officially go on sale.
Papp said once more tickets make their way to online resellers, it often blunts prices due to an elevated supply.
But for McLean, the practise continues to trouble her and she knows continues to bedevil Albertans who want to enjoy concerts and other events without having to break the bank.
“Certainly we’re very interested in this issue and we’ll be asking consumers for their input on this issue in a few weeks,” she said.