I know a facebook friend (family friend) and frequent commenter here, got some.

Floor seats! Thanks Ticketmaster. And quick Mac computer. Also, thanks to Corey for sending me the text message which reminded me to buy tickets. I'll take offers, of course.

Pretty much the same experience.  Logged on by 10:15, but came up empty.

Was logged in and ready to go before 10 am and had absolutely no luck. Tried for over an hour. Ticketmaster can suck it.

Everyone hates ticketmaster but that's the only ticket company the DECC/Amsoil will go through.  If you organize an event at the DECC you must use ticketmaster, and your patrons will incur the fee.  It's ridiculous.

Hey "Need," it's your connection speed, luck, and perhaps manual dexterity that might have helped you score tix. Has nothing to do with the brand, OS, or operating speed of your computer. Just sayin'.

How is the decc for sound? Sport buildings for music are usually my least favorite shows...

The people that wanted them, were the "ticket resellers" so they could "profit" off of them.

nodnetni, I agree 100%.

Somebody in St. Paul should take a look at the "scalping law" and repeal.

Marian, that is a very good point. I really don't understand (unless the performer has some control/contractual) why the DECC/Amsoil does not use the local ticket office to sell the tickets. You can buy the ticket cheaper at the DECC/Amsoil facility without all those "Ticketmaster" fees.

It's a public facility (probably tax exempt entity) and to have someone "gouge" the public with ticket prices 5 and 6 times greater than face value just stinks of profiteering.

Damn.

I'm mad about ticketmaster.  I didn't know if I was going to go to this show or not, but I would have at least liked the option of going.  Or better put, I would have liked to be competing for tickets with people who were actually buying their own tickets to go to the show themselves and not scalping profiteers.  As far as I know I have been p.o'd about Ticketmaster for over 20 years now.  And it seems to keep getting worse with bots and scalping programs.  

One time about 10 years ago, I think it was when Aerosmith was coming here, I got contracted as a DJ to do the whole "camping out for tickets" thing.  The radio station that was co-promoting the show was making it a sort of festival atmosphere and it was.  All until the ticket windows opened and a lot of the people who were there on site, cash/credit card in hand could not buy tickets because it sold out so fast.  

Now, as citizens, we own the Arena/DECC, do citizens have some say in who they contract with for tickets, or is the TM hold too powerful to buck.  I know Pearl Jam tried in the 90s and had some good luck but ultimately had to give in once or twice.  

--

Henry, -silver lining- I'm wondering if EJ might boost Homegrown sales, though.  Kinda in a blues fest sorta way, a lot of people coming in from out of town and they're gonna want to do something after the show. Sure there are cultural differences but at some point most true music lovers love all different kinds of good music.  Don't we?

Do people really have $800/ticket to spend on floor seats via a broker?  I can think of much better things to do with the $1600 my husband I would spend on a couple of hours of entertainment, not including parking lol.  I can't think of anyone in Duluth that would spend that much.  Do people fly in to do this?

I was lucky enough to score two tix on the main floor. I got onto TM by 10 am and just refreshed and refreshed the page on my lightning fast Mac laptop until I was able to get in -- by like 10:05. Wish I'd bought up to six now, so I could have resold them to friends who got shut out. I have a lot of disappointed friends who didn't get lucky. 

I used to buy my concert tickets at ticket outlets, but now only buy online since I went to the DECC to buy tickets and their line snaked all the way around the building. Ran to my office downtown, jumped on my computer, and had two tickets within minutes. Taught me not to even bother standing in line, even though it's a blast hanging out with other fans.

Maybe they should just go back to selling tickets at outlets so these scalpers in far away places can't fuck over people by buying up masses of tickets online. The current system totally sucks.

Love the humor in this string-- it's a dismal situation but laughter helps!!

I did get tickets for Elton, but it took two tries and manipulating ticket options to get through. This comes on the shirttails of my NOT getting tickets for Adele at First Ave. Those went on sale last week, I was ready, online, logged in, and couldn't get them despite their being available for 3x their value on scalper sites. I even was on the phone and through the system within five minutes of sale time. It's absolute BS.

I was online & ready to purchase the moment they went on sale, and had absolutely no luck whatsoever. Really disappointing, as I've been to countless concerts and never once have I set out to get tickets & been unsuccessful! I know of one person who got a pair right away, and another person who was able to purchase 4 at 10:30 or so. Lucky bums... Fortunately I've seen him before - one of the best shows I've attended!

Also, the tickets on the ticket broker sites are usually not "guaranteed." Oftentimes the only bad part of the experience with a broker is being grossly over-charged, but I know of several instances where tickets acquired from a ticket broker have not been honored at the event. So buyer beware...

There should be a 24 hour waiting period for online ticket sales for any event. Let the ticket offices sell them first, then online.

F.in.A.
I can't believe so many are crying over missing seeing a has-been @ such exorbitant prices. Yes, I've seen him a few times years ago *late 70's-early 80's* when concert prices were more proportionate, and luckily I didn't pay. Yes he was entertaining then, but not at the overpriced tickets now.

Just wait, in a few years he'll be at the Hinckley Casino, then downtown like Eddie Money for free, like all big acts whose venue performances grow smaller and smaller.

Seriously,
Once was enough.

It does suck that the online presences have gobbled up tix that the locals should/could have had, but, that's life/free enterprise/business/the net for ya. Note how sympathetic DECC people were. NOT! They don't care as long as they get their money. If they did, (especially for this first seemingly huge event) they could have set aside blocks of tix for locals - perhaps even only selling off the suck area (nose bleed/obscured view) tickets to the entities, knowing that the good tickets would surely be sold to appreciative and 'deserving' locals. This would have also served to bring locals back for future events. Now, what motivation is there for locals to attend future events, knowing how suck-ass this turned out for them after their efforts. Does the DECC care about locals, obviously not, it's all about the dollar. Embrace your new arena. <3 *gag*

There are so many better newer bands that could come to Duluth, and the prices would (maybe) be much more reasonable for all, but they still probably won't come, for whatever reasons - that or the promoters have such a small minded approach as to what is good/popular, and what will draw in their pickings, so as to not even pursue them or have a clue.

It cracks me up how excited that people are getting about this overall, and also that the bands coming/being sought out are so...well, passé.

Chalk it up to Duluth being years behind the times as always, and not really being 'for' her people.

I found it disturbing reading that the DECC people were using the same phone numbers and website as consumers were, that there weren't dedicated phone lines or a dedicated site for the venue to sell tickets to people in person.

Thanks Marian. I thought I'd read it in the DNT article, I know someone was complaining about it. Glad you got the scoop from the horse's mouth.

The largest "secondary"  (scalper) ticket seller in the world is ticketsnow.com, owned by Ticketmaster. 

Scalpers (secondaries) use bots to buy tickets and can scoop hundreds of ticket in seconds. Their software is much savvier than any high-speed connection or brand of computer. 

Springsteen had some issues with TM in a similar circumstance:

Ticketmaster and TicketsNow Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Sales Tactics

I thought that was a very good read, Craig.  I have always been cautious of ticket brokers because of reasons like that.  I had a sketchy issue one time and have never looked into doing it again.  I work in the self-service ticketing industry and hope to never get the reputation of these large online brokerages.

Either way this concert would be kickass to attend.

Peace,

John
Sell Tickets Online - http://www.ticketbud.com

I'd like to know how legislators vote on that bill, chadp -- and who introduced it anyway? Outrageous if it passes.

More than 40 tickets still available on EBay and almost 50 tickets still available on StubHub for tonight's concert. I hope the scalpers take a bath, and this kind of thing doesn't happen in Duluth in the future.