Yes because the security of barcodes and screenshotted tickets were such a huge problem before. Paying customers used to constantly miss out on events because someone else had already gotten in with their ticket. /s
Yes because the security of barcodes and screenshotted tickets were such a huge problem before.
I think what you just described is actually a problem. Friends of my parents were visiting somewhere, bought tickets to a show from a reseller, met up with the seller (normal looking guy, no red flags, gave some plausible story why he was selling) and paid cash for printed out tickets with barcodes. Printouts looked legit, dates on the printouts were correct, etc. Went to the doors, tried to scan their tickets, got told that unfortunately they'd just been scammed. The impression they get from the box office worker is that this sort of bad news is something they've had to deliver frequently. Anecdotal, but I doubt those friends of my parents were the only ones to get scammed in this way. TicketMaster still sucks as an organization but the extra security of rotating barcodes does serve a legitimate security purpose, just like the rotating security codes generated by an authenticator app.
Airlines have recently been having problems with stowaways using screenshots of boarding pass barcodes or QR codes too. Such stowaways should get caught before departure by passenger headcounts or boarding ID checks, but clearly there are gaps or breakdowns in these procedures because some of these stowaways are getting caught at the destination. Others may have successfully flown for free. If it keeps happening I bet we'll see rotating barcodes come to mobile boarding passes too, if that hasn't already happened.
They do. In fact they've been caught "reselling" tickets at scalper prices without them ever having been sold a first time.
The entire scalping/resale market arguably shouldn't exist, instead tickets should be refundable within reason, at which point the organiser can issue and sell new tickets.
Over here we use bar codes and QR codes exclusively and they deliver them through whatever method you want — PDF or image in email, text message, download PDF, you can even take a screenshot of the web page after you're done paying if you want.
Which I've done many times (the screenshot thing) esp for things like movie tickets where I don't bother with creating an account because I don't go that often. I look up the movie or event, pick the seats, pay, take a screenshot of the QR code, send it to whoever's going on Whatsapp, done.
I'm not sure I understand what the problem is. The venue already got their money. Either someone will show up to redeem the seat or they won't, they don't care either way. And it's trivial to make sure the codes can't be faked and that only the first scanned code gets in.
The fact there's no way to check you're not getting scammed has actually led to an almost total disappearance of scalping. The only resales happen only through friends or friend of a friend sort of thing.
Every once in a while there's some organizer who thinks they're smart and issue paper tickets and those are pretty much the only times you see tickets scalped online or outside the venue the night of the concert.
I'm sure it'll be a voucher just like the last lawsuit against a ticketing company. I'd like to say it was LiveNation but I honestly can't remember. I remember looking at the concerts I could go to with the voucher and they were all shit.
But that was the point, wasn't it. Give up potential profit that they were in fact never going to get in the first place.
I was given a free ticket to an event last night. I did it all using their web page. Their page was very slow and when I finally got to the point where it was supposed to show the ticket, it kept blanking the page right when the bar code would load. Luckily the gentleman at the booth could see it was legitimate and that there was a technical issue, so he printed it out for me.
The Amazon equivalent for my country does this for their site on mobile by removing filters and making it so anything related to your account just tells you to use the app.
However If you toggle desktop mode in your browser everything works perfectly fine. It's almost as if they just want to data mine you. Surely no company would have that as a motive!
AXS is no better as far as ticket scalpers go. Used them for Cruel World fest last year, they’re just another version of Ticketmaster. Maybe marginally less invasive app-wise, but as far as jacking up event prices they’re the same.
DICE is great, but most of these are tied to venues. Most of the bigger stages, stadiums, theaters, etc. all have contracts through LiveNation, so TicketMaster/LiveNation is the only way to enter those venues.
You can sometimes call the box office directly though.
You're talking about the same company that charges a "convenience" fee for ordering online. Then if you decide to go to buy them in person you charge a "facilities" fee.
It's really sad because the artists have little to no control over this. It is the venues who are contracted through Ticketmaster.
I remember Pearl Jam suing them for this in the 90s. Unfortunately, Pearl Jam lost and here we are 30 years later still dealing with their monopolistic tactics.
It makes me so mad that there are so many artists I cannot see because they only offer tickets through this scam. Billy Joel has been a lifelong bucket list artist, and I can't go see his tour because of this bullshit.
Oh well, I'll continue going to concerts using tickets sold by the venue.
Tap the circle in the top right and tap Upcoming Events.
Find your order and tap View Tickets to access your tickets. We recommend adding your tickets to a digital wallet so that you’ll always have your ticket on hand.
Your phone’s your ticket — scan it at the venue entrance and you’re in!
Yup, found this out at Dead & Co in SF last summer. Had to stand off to the side with my wife and 2 friends while downloading the app and going through the bullshit high off my ass with an army of deadheads behind us.
Unless they're dealing dope on the DNM. Then they're professional suppliers that want their product to generate as much as possible an oncoming, long term relationships that are respected for their strength in security and quality. You're about as likely to get fentanyl in your meth when you buy from regular long term vendors as you get real professionals on the street that won't stab you in the back; literally *and * metaphorically.
Hell I have the app on my phone, but yesterday, I received a ticket for an event, accepted it, and downloaded it to my phone without using that app at all.
I think OP is misunderstanding what is happening. The code changes every so often, probably to prevent people from passing around a screen shot and trying to get in that way. You can get the ticket without the app.
You also can't do shit with their service, app and web, if you're on a VPN. It just refuses. Even -- and this may be illegal -- unsubscribing from their emails.
I found this out after getting past security but before entering the venue. I had shit cell service and was just finding out I had to download, create an account for, and sign into their app, I was outside for maybe 10 minutes. Funny how they dont make you do any of this to buy the ticket, only after I paid money for it. AXS can suck my dick.
There are many other ways in life where you can have fun without getting fucked sideways by a corporation. But you do you, but make sure you keep complaining about it on social media while you keep letting them do that, though. That'll teach them a lesson :)
While they suck horribly, also scalpers. I have almost no issue with a venue requiring a verified app and quite frankly picture ID to allow entry. But please figure out how to do it without giving ticketmaster a dime.
The reason you can't use screenshots or printouts is because they're now using rotating barcodes. Much like the rotating codes in an authenticator app, the number values behind the barcode are changing on some regular cadence. Only the most recent barcode value is considered valid.
The only other option is to use a mobile wallet, but that prevents me from sending my friends their tickets, since I purchased them all together.
Some ticket sellers allow you to transfer tickets from one wallet to another wallet, but of course TicketMaster isn't one of them because they're fucking TicketMaster. What TicketMaster does allow is transfers from one TicketMaster account to another. Of course then everyone needs to have a TicketMaster account, needs to have the app, etc. It's either that or leave all the tickets in your app or wallet and go in together. If you tell the door person "I have the tickets for these X people," they'll be able to handle that.