NATB blasts Steve Wynn over Garth Brooks ticket policy

Angered over what it calls "hypocritical and disrespectful" actions toward ticket brokers, the National Association of Ticket Brokers (NATB) today blasted hotelier Steve Wynn for his aggressive stance against ticket resale for Garth Brooks's upcoming residency concerts at the Wynn's Encore Theatre.

Wynn's move so upset the NATB that it is pulling its annual summer conference and trade show from the hotel, which has hosted it for the past several years.

“Fans should have the right to buy and sell the tickets they want without having to RSVP their guests or risk cancellation based on new, arbitrary rules. They’re changing the rules in the middle of the game, and it’s only going to hurt the fans who can’t find tickets, or are stuck with ones they can’t use," Gary Adler, General Counsel to the NATB, said in a statement. “These actions aren’t meant to address any problems with brokers or the reselling of tickets. They are meant to restrict the open market and eliminate any competition for tickets."

Last week, Brooks and Wynn announced the popular country performer would play a five-year run of shows at the hotel, beginning in December, and the first batch of 20 dates quickly sold out. In addition to other rules, Wynn is requiring all ticket buyers to identify who will use the tickets or risk having their purchase canceled.

In an email statement to ticket buyers, Wynn admitted that the requirements were potentially difficult. "While we understand that this is an inconvenience, it is especially so for the unauthorized sellers. Our efforts, initiatives and communication with you may continue until such a point we are satisfied that all scalping activity has ceased."

The theater seats about 1,500, though the hotel would not specify the exact number, and Wynn plans to withhold as many as 200 tickets per show at the hotel's discretion for high-rollers and other guests.

“Fans hire brokers to help them find the tickets they want, for the price they can pay, or to resell the tickets they can’t use," Adler said in a statement. "Wynn has no right to tell these fans ‘hey, tough luck - unless you bought them at our box office within two hours of going on sale then you can’t go to the show.’"

Adler continued, “NATB brings hundreds of brokers each year to the Wynn at our annual ticket broker conference, but now they’ve lost our business. These actions are hypocritical and disrespectful to the very industry that supports their acts and their customers.”