apple_pathways | Ticketmaster can BITE ME HARD!

They're like this evil dictator that rules over concertgoers and turns awesome, reasonably-priced $15.00 tickets into $23.00 tickets. UGH!

Can someone explain to me the difference between a "convenience fee" and an "order processing fee"??? And why, exactly, it costs Ticketmaster $4.00 to process my tickets when I print them out my own damn self 30 seconds after paying for them???

*sigh* I'm going to see Bell X1 in June at The Ark. They're a band that I probably wouldn't go out of my way to see under other circumstances, but I love that venue so much, I'll see just about anybody there! It's a non-profit music venue in Ann Arbor, really small and intimate, great atmosphere, and just a really chill and lovely place to see bands! They host a lot of folk music, and smaller less-well-known bands. The Ann Arbor Folk Festival I went to back in January was a fundraiser for this venue.

I probably should have asked my friend who's going with me to go down there and buy the tickets in person to save some fees, but she's in the last few weeks of her grad school program and quite busy. (Also, she's a notorious procrastinator at the best of times, and I don't want the tickets to sell out! Bell X1 is a larger band than they usually host at The Ark, and they don't have a whole lot of seating, so I wanted to be safe.)

Anyway, I think it will be a great show! And by the time I go, I will have forgotten all about how Ticketmaster ripped me off. D:

In other news: DAMMIT I REALLY WANT TO SEE THE DECEMBERISTS! (I was supposed to see them in February, but the show was snowed out and rescheduled for this last Friday--the night I had tickets to see the Pixies!) Becca was telling me all about the show, and it sounded like SO MUCH FUN! And she recorded seven minutes of video of them playing The Mariner's Revenge Song, complete with audience participation/roleplay, and guh--life is not fair! Whoever rescheduled that show for Friday is seriously on my shit list!

And now I will stop complaining about my Very Hard Life, going to concerts and spending money I don't have. :P HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE!

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I've heard a lot of reasons for Ticketmaster's ridiculous fees. I'm partial to this one, since it makes sense and doesn't involve a lot of hand-waving about what kinds of "convenience" you should have to pay for. It also partly explains why there are more and more smaller venues with ridiculous online fees now. Though I don't understand why going to the box office is that much cheaper, since in most cases ticketmaster isn't searching the tickets for you... they actually control the tickets. So there still ends up being a ticketmaster search done and... at that point it basically comes back around to Ticketmaster Is Evil.

That explanation makes sense, and I would completely buy it: that venues and artists use Ticketmaster as a scapegoat to charge higher fees. In the case of the Ark, though--it's a non-profit venue! (And they openly charged a 'facilities fee', on top of the other two fees I mentioned.) It could be the band scrounging up the extra money, but: BAH! (It was the "order processing fee", which wasn't added until the very last second, that really got under my skin. I almost missed it on the final 'confirm' screen, before I noticed that the total price had magically jumped up another $4.00.)

*sigh* I understand that music is a business. I just hate the way they nickel and dime the extra money out of you! Perhaps I should be smarter, but when considering whether or not I want to go to a show, I always consider the ticket price: "Hey, $15.00! I can afford that!" By the time I get to the final screen and discover it's actually going to be $23.00/ticket, I've already made plans and have my heart set on going. EVIL!

Ok, done griping now. HAPPY EASTER!

Yeah, I'm still pretty suspicious about most of the fees. Especially facilities fees for a non-profit venue... what the heck? I wonder if those get tacked on to the box office sales as well, or if that's Ticketmaster going "Well, everyone already hates us, might as well..."

But anyway... HAPPY EASTER! Have you watched the new Doctor Who episode yet?

I have, I have! What did you think?

I liked it... but I already know I'm really going to hate all the cliffhangers we're going to have this season. As much as I like Moffatt's timey-wimey plot craziness, I miss the kind of goofy episodic Who. I think the last semi-lighthearted episode we had was... The Lodger? Which I guess was really only three episodes ago, but it feels like it's been so long, what with all the dying and not-dying and un-dying and re-death and...

But the Silence (if that's what they are) are pretty cool. Minus the force lightning and explosion thing... I could do without that.

What were your impressions?

Wait a minute--the crazy alien boogie men are The Silence??? I did not know that!

I loved the Force lightning scene! Mostly because it just looked really, really cool. These aliens are super creepy, and get my unconditional stamp of approval. (As long as it's explained why they're all wearing suits. Don't get me wrong, I love the suits: but there has to be a Reason why they're wearing them. It's not like it's to blend in or anything. :P)

Anyway, I do miss the goofy, episodic eps you were talking about. I like a good storyline, but if they pull an X Files and end up just piling mystery on top of mystery until I don't understand (or care) what's going on anymore, I am going to be Pissed. (For reference, see: LOST.)

And Amy is pregnant already?! WTF? What are your thoughts on that? I was mostly saddened by the revelation, as it more or less confirms that Rory and Amy will be leaving at the end of the season.

Also: Doctor's death! Any non-spoilery theories floating around?

I hate Ticketmaster and their ilk SOOO MUCH. Such bullshit.

TOTALLY! *shakes fist*

i was just thinking about that show b/c my mom really likes Bell X1, but i dunno if we'd be able to make it

also, PIXIES! SO MUCH FUCKING FUN!

The Ark is such an awesome venue, you guys should go if there's any possibility you can!

Oh, your creepy, creepy icon...I LOVE IT! :P

wanna grow up to be, be a debaser!

SLICIN' UP EYEBALLS!

Ticketmaster can BITE ME HARD!

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