2009 StubHub Concert Ticket Annual Report
Fans Buy and Sell Tickets for Over 14,000 Concert Events on StubHub
San Francisco, CA - (December 10, 2009) – StubHub is pleased to release its fourth annual concert ticket report on sales activity for music events during the 2009 calendar year. The information in the report reveals trends and information from the year in concert ticket sales via the world's largest ticket marketplace. Data includes similar sets as in previous years—top grossing tours, year-over-year comparisons—as well as new metrics and burgeoning ticket trends.
StubHub Key Concert Ticket Stats for 2009
· Gross dollar sales of concert tickets increased 40% from 2008 (40% increase from 2007 to 2008)
· Overall, fans bought and sold tickets for over 14,000 concert events on StubHub (over 11,000 in 2008)
· The average price of concert tickets sold through StubHub was $133 ($159 in 2008)
· U2’s 360° Tour is the highest-grossing concert tour in StubHub history
Top 10 Concert Tours, based on gross sales
1. U2
2. Bruce Springsteen
3. Phish
4. Taylor Swift
5. Britney Spears
6. Dave Matthews Band
7. Elton John
8. Jonas Brothers
9. Kenny Chesney
10. Metallica
Top 10 Concerts, based on gross sales
1. U2 /Muse - Giants Stadium (9/24)
2. U2/Muse - Giants Stadium (9/23)
3. U2/Snow Patrol - Soldier Field (9/12)
4. U2/Black Eyed Peas - Rose Bowl (10/25)
5. U2 - Raymond James Stadium (10/9)
6. U2 - Sam Boyd Stadium (10/23)
7. U2 /Snow Patrol - Gillette Stadium (9/20)
8. U2 /Snow Patrol - Soldier Field (9/13)
9. U2 - Dallas Cowboys Stadium (10/12)
10. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band - Giants Stadium (10/9)
Highest Average Priced Concerts (minimum 1000 tickets purchased)
$424 - 25th Anniversary Rock Hall of Fame Benefit Concert on 10/29 at Madison Square Garden*
$384 - Phish on 3/6 at Hampton Coliseum
$359 - Phish on 3/7 at Hampton Coliseum
$312 - 25th Anniversary Rock Hall of Fame Benefit Concert on 10/30 at Madison Square Garden*
$310 - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on 5/18 at Verizon Center
*StubHub donated nearly $250,000 to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, as a result of our partnership and the fan-to-fan resale of tickets to the two 25th Anniversary Benefit Concerts on StubHub.
Lowest Average Priced Concerts (minimum 1000 tickets purchased)
$29 - Phish on 11/18 at Cobo Arena
$44 - Phish on 8/11 at Toyota Park
$51 - Phish on 8/13 at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
$54 - Phish on 11/20 at US Bank Arena
$56 - Phish on 11/24 at Wachovia Center
Standout Cities
This year’s concert report features a new metric, expanding on our annual Rockin’ Cities Rankings. StubHub took a regional look into year-over-year sales, identifying the highest growth cities and the top concert (based on gross sales) in each respective market. The list is as follows:
City | Growth | Top Concert |
Birmingham, AL | > 275% | Taylor Swift on 9/11 at BJCC Arena |
Richmond, VA | > 175% | Phish on 3/6 at Hampton Coliseum |
Edmonton, AB | > 150% | AC DC on 8/26 at Commonwealth Stadium |
Austin/ San Antonio, TX | > 100% | Austin City Limits Festival on 10/2-4 at Zilker Park |
Nashville, TN | > 100% | Taylor Swift on 9/12 at Sommet Center |
Tampa/ St. Petersburg, FL | > 95% | U2 on 10/9 at Raymond James Stadium |
Calgary, AB | > 90% | Kiss Alive 35 on 11/12 at Pengrowth Saddledome |
Albany, NY | > 80% | Phish on 8/16 at Sarasota Springs Performing Arts Center |
Buffalo, NY | > 75% | Bruce Springsteen on 8/13 at Darien Lake Performing Arts Ctr |
Columbus, OH | > 70% | Taylor Swift on 7/17 at Value City Arena |
Each concert listed above was a strong contributor to the overall growth of each respective city, namely Taylor Swift, who accounts for three of the ten standout cities listed above. Nashville sits in the middle of the pack, boasting more than 100% yearly growth in concert sales, with her September performance at Sommet Center as the top show. As it turned out, only 12% of the venue’s seats were available to the general public for that concert, as reported by Nashville’s WTVFlast month. Such scenarios contribute to the scarcity of tickets in a primary ticket on-sale, despite misleading information that resellers snatch up all the tickets.
Paperless ticketing as it's done today, restricts fan rights and eliminates competition.
A seemingly convenient paperless ticketing system was adopted by Miley Cyrus and several other artists in 2009, where physical tickets are not issued and only the ticket buyer’s credit card and ID are needed to grant entry. However, there are major drawbacks to restricted paperless ticketing systems the way they work today, including:
§ Tickets are non-transferable, which means fans cannot give tickets as a gift and have limited to no options if they have last-minute plan changes
§ In instances where tickets are transferable, tickets can only be transferred or resold through the primary website and pricing is typically restricted. This means that both buyers and sellers have limited or no choice. The recession brought many below face-value bargains for fans on StubHub and eBay (as low as $5-$10 for sports and concert tickets), and that kind of open marketplace dynamic disappears in a closed loop paperless system.
Paperless technology itself is not something StubHub is for or against. If it proves to offer more convenience to fans and preserves their rights and a competitive marketplace, then we will support it. StubHub is against the anti-consumer and anti-competitive path paperless has taken to date, limiting consumer choice and eliminating competitive pricing.
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