Yeah, this whole "you're buying ALL the stamps" argument is so weak it's embarrassing.
absolutely correct - equating concert tickets with stamps is ridiculous and incorrect.
some ways in which beer (or a postage stamp) isn't like a concert ticket:
- there is a virtually unlimited supply of beer (and postage stamps). bars can order more if they start to run out, any shortage is temporary. concert tickets are in limited supply. once they're gone, that's it.
- beer is a physical good that you enjoy immediately - it's value is intrinsic. a concert ticket has no intrinsic value, it's a piece of paper. the value that it represents is a license to attend an event. you can dictate the terms of a license - for example, you're not allowed re-selling cable no matter what price the cable company charges you for it.
I think the real point is that its hard for the concert goer to take sympathy here.
You pay Band X $10,000 to play at the club and then charge 1000 people $25 to get in to see them.
you are charging a premium to make a profit because you have the resources to have a band play at your club. So when someone else has the resources to buy 100 tickets and sell them for his own profit, I dont see the difference.
there are many differences: seth & the artists have a contract and have leverage over each other. if a band doesn't like how seth sells his tickets, they can choose not to do business with him. if either party has a problem with the other, they have recourse to courts. the scalper is outside all this. from a strategic point of view, the band and the club are also trying to establish a long-term relationship with their client base. the scalper is interested in a one-time sale.
BTW, sonick, are you implying that capitalism is bad? that as soon as anyone charges more than what they pay, it's scalping?!?
