Pssst! Want a Ticket? Hey, I?m Legit. Really.interesting read. selected quotes:
In contrast to the popular image of the ticket trader as a shadowy hustler, the life of the rank-and-file online broker can be surprisingly humdrum. In interviews several small resellers described a job not unlike that of a low-margin day trader. Each morning they scour the Web for passwords to use for special promotions on Ticketmaster, and all day they keep close watch on their secondary-exchange listings, making numerous competitive price adjustments. One New England broker, who also sells office supplies and didn?t want his name used to protect both jobs, said that for this high-maintenance side gig he hopes to make $40,000 a year.
(...)
To reach the widest potential market most brokers list their tickets on exchanges like StubHub, TicketsNow and TicketNetwork. Special software is needed to do that efficiently, and Mr. Vaccaro?s is particularly attractive to the little guys because of one ingenious feature: it allows them to borrow one another?s listings for their own Web sites, advertising what appear to be huge pools of tickets.
As a result hundreds of sites are all essentially offering the same seats.When brokers use the TicketNetwork software, whoever makes the sale gets a commission, even if another party fills the order. This can be great for brokers adept at drawing Web traffic. But it can confuse consumers, who don?t always know whom they are buying from until their transaction has been completed.
(...)
Then, with a wheezy chuckle, Mr. Vaccaro remembered the speech he gave at the first Ticket Summit.
?I know that you?ve all heard stories,? he recalled saying, ?about box-office managers getting cash payoffs, primary ticket outlets selling their tickets directly to brokers, managers selling their tickets to brokers. And I just want to dispel those rumors right now by confirming that they?re all true. This is the way that it was.
?But I think it?s getting better.?
</quotes>
