The Cure’s frontman Robert Smith gets Ticketmaster to give refunds
‘The extra cost is outrageous’: Furious music fans accuse ‘predatory’ Ticketmaster for ‘fleeing them’ at ‘excessive cost’ – after The Cure frontman Robert Smith declared ticketing titan on Twitter
- Smith tweeted that he received $10 and $20 refunds for The Cure fans
- Fees were called off by customers who said Ticketmaster ‘fleet’ them
Robert Smith, frontman of The Cure, has convinced Ticketmaster that he should refund some of the booking fees the company charged fans for his US tour.
The “outrageous” fees were called out by customers who said Ticketmaster “fur” them for a concert for which the band had hoped to hold tickets at a reasonable price.
Smith took to Twitter to tell fans he was “as sick as all of you” and would be reaching out to Ticketmaster following a major backlash over the allegations.
He later tweeted to reveal that he had received $10 (£8) refunds for everyone who bought the cheapest tickets, which cost $20 (£16), and $5 for everyone else.
“If you have already bought a ticket, you will automatically get your money back,” he tweeted. “All tickets on sale tomorrow will be charged a lower cost.”
Smith took to Twitter to tell fans he was “as sick as all of you” and would be reaching out to Ticketmaster following a major backlash over the allegations
Fans welcomed the move, with a “this is a start” response after Smith took action.
British singer and frontman of rock band The Charlatans, Tim Burgess, said he was not surprised by the fees, arguing that ‘the system is broken’.
So @thecure and @RobertSmith wanted to keep ticket prices at a reasonable level for fans on their upcoming North American tour dates.
“Of course @Ticketmaster absolutely flushed them with ridiculous extra charges.”
High booking fees have long plagued music fans, and today many took to Twitter to praise Smith for taking action while criticizing Ticketmaster for its “greed” and “predatory” behavior.
Nigel Carr, editor at Louder Than War, said he hoped the incident would convince more acts to campaign for outrageous fees.
“Everything is automated, so why are these exorbitant costs in place? If more bands took a stand like Robert Smith has, it would dissipate some of this outrageous expense.
“I would advise fans to use social media to expose excessive charges, as just writing emails to Ticketmaster isn’t going to help much. Really scared. Tag the acts in it and try to make your voice heard.’
The Cure — whose Shows of a Lost World North American tour begins in May — was first warned about ticket sales issues on Wednesday, when fans began sharing screenshots of their Ticketmaster baskets.
Smith took to Twitter to tell fans he was “as sick as all of you” and would be reaching out to Ticketmaster following a major backlash over the allegations.
In one case, a fan who bought four $20 (£16.54) tickets ended up paying $172.10 (£142), after adding a service charge, a facility charge, and another “processing” fee.
A second, booking for Phoenix in Arizona, coughed up $72.25 (£59.75) for a $20 (£16.54) face value ticket.
Smith criticized the fees in a series of all-caps tweets, writing, “I’M AS SICK AS YOU ALL ARE BY TODAY’S TICKETMASTER ‘FEES’ DEBACLE.” TO BE VERY CLEAR: THE ARTIST HAS NO WAY TO LIMIT THEM.
“I ASKED HOW THEY ARE JUSTIFIED. IF I GET SOMETHING COhesive BY AN ANSWER I WILL LET YOU ALL KNOW. X’
High booking fees have long plagued music fans, and today many took to Twitter to praise Smith for taking action while criticizing Ticketmaster for his “greed”
He later announced that Ticketmaster had agreed to refunds “as a goodwill gesture.”
The site has angered music fans in the past, including in November when it canceled general ticket sales for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour because demand for premium tickets had left “insufficient remaining ticket stock.”
Meanwhile, company bosses have been challenged by US senators for “monopolizing” the ticketing market and praising kids out of concerts.
Ticketmaster has been contacted for comment.
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