Jackson fans angered by choice of refund or 'keepsake' ticket
Posted
Jun 30 2009, 03:48 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
The concert promoter that organized the 50 sold-out "This is It" London performances that Michael Jackson will never give is offering disappointed fans a choice: A refund of the $125 or so they paid -- or the actual ticket, which the promoter says was designed by Jackson himself as a keepsake.
"Since he loved his fans in life, it is incumbent upon us to treat them with the same reverence and respect after his death," Randy Phillips, president and CEO of AEG Live, said in a statement. In fact, AEG suggested in an article in TheWrap that thousands of people are clamoring for the tickets.
Other fans are more than skeptical.
"Yes, I would like the ticket, but I will not pay more than £10 for it ...," wrote "Whimzeekat" in a comment at The Hip Hop Chronicle UK. "This is just the way I feel and unfortunately some fans will want the ticket but I hope they see sense and not buy into this moneymaking scheme."
The Telegraph reported that another fan wrote, "If they really wanted to treat us with 'reverence and respect' then they would offer the refund AND the tickets, and not make this blatant attempt to cover their financial losses."
Isabelle, in a post at I Am So Annoyed called "Cashing in on Michael Jackson's death," commented:
Very clever. With tickets costing a minimum of $105 each, the promoters stand to retain a substantial amount of the money since many ticket holders will view this as an eBay opportunity. ... I am sure that there are some true fans out there who want a piece of MJ to remember the artist he was but my guess is most are just in it for the money.
Lots of money is at stake here on both sides of the equation: About 750,000 tickets were sold (but not yet delivered), most for $82 or $125 (VIP tickets cost $1,300 or more) for the 50 concerts Jackson had planned at London's O2 Arena. That's about $85 million in sales.
The Los Angeles Times says AEG Live had already spent more than $20 million on the concerts, and -- depending on the cause of death -- might be on the hook for the full cost of refunding the tickets. Fewer refunds mean more money for AEG. (Another potential moneymaker for AEG is a recording the promoter made of Jackson's final rehearsal at the Staples Center. "According to those familiar with the recording, it would be releasable both as a CD, DVD and Blu-(ray) and high-definition DVD," TheWrap story says.)
Meanwhile, sales of all-things-Jackson have soared on eBay. The Oregonian reports:
According to Smartmoney.com, after his death, the amount of Jackson merchandise listed on eBay surged 275%. Related items up for sale include a street copy of the June 25, 2009, Los Angeles Times (buy it now for $10!), a 1973 yearbook from Jackson's prep school (starting bid: $5,000), and a signed original black felt fedora offered by Chuck Palmer of Portland. As of Tuesday morning, bids for the iconic hat reached $7,600.
Among the items offered on eBay are some of those keepsake tickets, the Telegraph reports.
Related reading:
Concert promoter in trouble after Jackson's death
10 dysfunctional family businesses
Turning garage sale junk into eBay gold
