Ticketmaster is the largest ticket sales and distribution company in the United States. Many major concert venues, sports stadiums, and theaters use Ticketmaster to sell their tickets. This means that Ticketmaster handles ticket sales for the majority of live entertainment events across the country.
When you buy a ticket to a concert, show, or sporting event from Ticketmaster, part of your ticket price goes to Ticketmaster as a service fee. This raises the question – how much does the performing artist or team get from each ticket sold on Ticketmaster? What percentage of the ticket price actually makes it back to the artist or team hosting the event?
Ticket Price Breakdown
When you buy a ticket on Ticketmaster, your ticket price is broken down into different components:
Face Value
The face value of the ticket is the base price set by the artist/team/venue hosting the event. This is the amount that goes to the event organizer to pay for costs related to putting on the event, including paying the performers.
Service Fees
Ticketmaster charges service fees on top of the face value to cover their operating costs and make a profit. Service fees can include charges like order processing fees, delivery fees, and facility charges. Service fees typically range from 10% to 25% of the base ticket price.
Other Charges
Your final ticket price at checkout may also include other charges added by the venue or organizer, like parking fees or charity donations.
So in summary, your full ticket price consists of:
- Face value of ticket (goes to artist/team/venue)
- Ticketmaster service fees (goes to Ticketmaster)
- Other charges added by venue/organizer
The amount that actually makes it back to the artist or team is just the face value portion.
Where Does the Money Go?
To understand exactly how much artists make from Ticketmaster ticket sales, we need to take a closer look at where the money from each ticket goes:
Face Value Revenue
As noted above, the face value of the ticket goes to the event host, such as the musical performer, sports team, theater company, etc. This revenue is used to pay for:
- Paying performers
- Venue and equipment rental
- Staff
- Marketing and promotions
- Production costs (lighting, sound, etc.)
For concert tickets, the majority of the face value revenue goes to the artist. According to one industry estimate, the performer takes around 70% of the base ticket price. The rest goes to covering the costs of putting on the show.
Ticketmaster Service Fees
As a ticket retailer, Ticketmaster gets to keep the fees it charges on each ticket. These fees cover:
- Wages for Ticketmaster employees
- Operating costs for ticketing software and hardware
- Call center costs
- Ticketing website hosting and maintenance
- Marketing expenses
- Profit for Ticketmaster shareholders
Ticketmaster’s operating margin across all of its ticketing operations is estimated to be around 25% to 30%.
Other Charges
Any other charges added to the ticket by the venue, promoter, or event host are kept by those parties. These additional fees may be used to pay for venue operations, parking, charity programs, and more.
What Percentage Does the Performer Get?
So what does this all mean in terms of the percentage of each ticket sale the artist actually gets?
This can vary greatly based on factors like:
- The base ticket price
- The level of Ticketmaster fees added
- Other charges added by the venue
- The performer’s overall costs to put on the show
According to one industry estimate, the average performer or musical act may get around 50-60% of the total ticket price per Ticketmaster ticket sold to their concert.
This percentage can be higher for very high-priced tickets, where the Ticketmaster fees make up a smaller portion of the total cost. Established artists with big tours may also get a greater percentage than bands just starting out.
Ticket Price Example
Here’s a breakdown using a hypothetical $100 concert ticket purchased through Ticketmaster:
Ticket Component | Amount |
---|---|
Face Value | $60 |
Ticketmaster Fees | $25 |
Venue Facility Fee | $15 |
Total Ticket Price | $100 |
In this example:
- The face value or base price is $60, all going to the artist.
- Ticketmaster takes $25 in fees.
- The venue collects a $15 facility fee.
That means the performer would take home $60 of the total $100 ticket price, or 60% of the amount paid. Ticketmaster gets 25% and the venue gets 15%.
Strategies Artists Use to Earn More
Performers and their management teams employ different approaches to try to maximize how much they can earn from Ticketmaster ticket sales:
Dynamic Pricing
Some artists use dynamic or “market-based” pricing for tickets. This means ticket prices start lower and increase as demand goes up. The goal is to capture more of the value from fans willing to pay more to see highly popular events or secure the best seats.
Higher Base Prices
Bands may strategically set higher face value/base ticket prices. Even with the same percentage fees, a more expensive base price means more money makes it back to the artist. Established acts with big fan bases can typically support higher base pricing.
Tiered Pricing
Tiered ticket pricing helps artists earn more from the most dedicated fans. Front row or VIP seats have a much higher base value, compared to nosebleed seats. This captures more revenue from fans who want an exclusive experience.
Upsells and Bundled Offers
Artists can further monetize each fan by offering ticket bundles or upsells like VIP packages, meet-and-greets, merchandise bundles, and more. These extras let the performer keep more of every dollar spent above base ticket prices.
Reduced Fees
Huge touring acts with serious selling power can sometimes negotiate lower Ticketmaster fees by volume. This may increase the percentage of each ticket going back to the artist. But smaller acts have little power to negotiate pricing.
The Challenges Artists Face
There are inherent challenges artists face in dealing with large ticket retailers like Ticketmaster:
Lack of Pricing Control
Performers have little control over added fees and charges driving up costs for fans. Ticketmaster and venues set most prices.
Little Room for Negotiation
Emerging and mid-sized artists have almost no leverage to negotiate better deals on fees or pricing. Ticketmaster dominates enough event venues that bands can’t really say no or threaten to take their tours elsewhere.
Secondary Market Competition
Ticket resale sites like Stubhub divert sales (and profits) away from primary sellers like Ticketmaster. This cuts into the percentage artists can earn from initial sales.
Reduced Fan Loyalty
Some research shows Ticketmaster’s fees have slowly reduced fan loyalty over time. Part of consumers’ ticket price doesn’t support the artists they love. This may gradually weaken the artist-fan relationship.
Could Blockchain Ticketing Help Artists?
Some entertainment startups have proposed blockchain technology as an alternative ticketing solution that could potentially increase profits for event hosts:
Lower Fees
By eliminating centralized ticket intermediaries, blockchain platforms in theory could offer lower middleman fees. This may return more money back to artists and venues.
More Pricing Control
Smart contracts could give artists and teams greater flexibility to set prices, institute caps, implement loyalty programs, and maximize revenues from superfans.
Secure Transactions
Blockchain’s encryption, transparency, and immutability provides a more secure and fraud-resistant ticketing environment. This helps mitigate losses from counterfeits and scalping scams.
Direct Fan Relationships
Performers may benefit from a more direct connection with fans if they control primary sales via blockchain. This could foster stronger engagement and loyalty between artists and ticket holders.
However, blockchain is still an emerging concept. Major adoption and implementation challenges remain before it could threaten established players like Ticketmaster in the ticketing market.
Conclusion
The amount of money that ends up in an artist’s pocket from each Ticketmaster ticket sold to their live events can vary widely – but typically ranges around 50-60% of the total ticket price. Performers only receive the “face value” portion of the ticket, while Ticketmaster takes service fees off the top and venues may add other charges.
Bands have some levers they can use in pricing strategies to try capturing more tour revenue from their most loyal fans. But in general, artists have limited control and face challenges posed by Ticketmaster’s dominance in the industry. Emerging blockchain startups pitch new fan-centric models as a way artists could potentially take back more control and earn a greater percentage from direct ticketing sales in the future.