For much of the next month, Madison Square Garden in New York City is “Harry’s House” – playing host to a lengthy stretch of shows from Harry Styles to the delight of his fans. And for those who didn’t grab tickets during the initial rush, ticket resale markets have substantial inventory available for lower prices than the surged “platinum” prices that greeted fans during the initial onsale period earlier this summer.
The “Harry’s House” residency shows were one of the many instances where fans saw ticket prices surged through the roof by Ticketmaster’s “Platinum” pricing systems. Fans howled during the initial sales period, finding prices for most of the shows – taking place in Toronto, New York, Austin, Chicago, and Los Angeles – surged to well over $1,000 per seat after fees were taken into account, despite having also been subject to the restrictive “verified fan” system in the first place.
From our coverage during the initial sale:
Consumers were complaining of presale prices being surged as “platinum” to amounts as high as $1,750 plus fees for tickets in New York. A quick check on Thursday during the general sale showed prices for one Madison Square Garden show (of 15 at the venue) ranging between $450-over $1,000. Not a single seat had “standard” pricing in place, all were “platinum.”
Now, as the New York shows are underway, the best prices for many seats are not from Ticketmaster, but rather from ticket resale marketplaces. Ticket Club, which offers resale tickets at a steep discount for members, shows tickets for as low as $235 for Friday night’s show at Madison Square Garden, compared to a “Platinum” minimum ticket priced at $350.15 after fees from the Ticketmaster box office. Going further out to shows later in the run, a high portion of the Ticket Club offerings are priced below the “platinum” price points, even within the same section.
Take the September 14th show at MSG – a Wednesday night. Ticket Club has tickets going for as low as $232 total, with lower level seats starting at $289 per seat and numerous options for below $400.
Screenshot from TicketClub.com of the September 14 Harry Styles show at MSG taken at 1:20 PM Friday August 26
Ticketmaster’s least expensive seat after fees for the same show is a “platinum” pair in Section 225 priced at $509.70 each after fees are added. Lower level seats can’t be had for less than $563.65 after fees.
Screenshot from Ticketmaster of the September 14 Harry Styles show at MSG taken at 1:20 PM Friday August 26
Ticket Club isn’t alone in having secondary market ticket prices that equal or beat the box office “platinum” pricing available to consumers. StubHub has tickets for as low as $264 after estimated fees for tonight’s show. Tickets are available on TickPick for as little as $238, with lower level seats down to a low point of just over $300 for Friday. The list goes on, but it’s clear – “platinum” prices aren’t remotely the best way to go for Harry Styles fans looking to secure last-minute tickets.
This all begs the question – will artists continue to go for Ticketmaster’s pricing system when it has turned into such a public relations nightmare for so many of them in the wake of the pandemic? Harry Styles has seen two main headlines for his concerts this year – positive reviews of the shows themselves, and negative stories about how upset his fans are over the ticketing prices and feelings of being ripped off. Bruce Springsteen has generated the most negative press of his entire career through the aggressive use of platinum pricing, causing a storm of headlines that continues to this day.
At what point is the reputational damage not worth the extra revenue split between the artist, promoter, and ticketing company taking a cut of every dollar along the way?
Harry Styles Ticket Links
Tickets at MEGASeats.com | No Service Charge/Free Shipping – 10% Off Using Code TICKETNEWS
Tickets at Event Tickets Center
Tickets at Scorebig
Tickets at StubHub
Tickets at Ticket Club | Free Membership Offer
Tickets at TicketNetwork
Tickets at TickPick
Tickets at TicketSmarter
Harry Styles Tour Dates
Fri Aug 26 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*!
Sat Aug 27 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*!
Sun Aug 28 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Thu Sep 01 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Fri Sep 02 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Sat Sep 03 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Wed Sep 07 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Thu Sep 08 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Sat Sep 10 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Wed Sep 14 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Thu Sep 15 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Wed Sep 21 – New York, NY | Madison Square Garden is Harry’s House*
Sun Sep 25 – Austin, TX | Moody Center is Harry’s House~
Mon Sep 26 – Austin, TX | Moody Center is Harry’s House~
Wed Sep 28 – Austin, TX | Moody Center is Harry’s House~
Thu Sep 29 – Austin, TX | Moody Center is Harry’s House~
Sun Oct 02 – Austin, TX | Moody Center is Harry’s House~
Thu Oct 06 – Chicago, IL | United Center is Harry’s House#
Sat Oct 08 – Chicago, IL | United Center is Harry’s House#
Sun Oct 09 – Chicago, IL | United Center is Harry’s House#
Thu Oct 13 – Chicago, IL | United Center is Harry’s House#
Fri Oct 14 – Chicago, IL | United Center is Harry’s House#
Sun Oct 23 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum is Harry’s House+!
Mon Oct 24 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum is Harry’s House+!
Wed Oct 26 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum is Harry’s House+!
Fri Oct 28 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum is Harry’s House+!
Sat Oct 29 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum is Harry’s House+!
Mon Oct 31 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Wed Nov 02 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Fri Nov 04 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Sat Nov 05 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Mon Nov 07 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Wed Nov 09 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Fri Nov 11 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Sat Nov 12 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Mon Nov 14 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
Tue Nov 15 – Los Angeles, CA | Kia Forum is Harry’s House+
NOV 20, 2022 – ARENA VFG | GUADALAJARA, MEXICO
NOV 22, 2022 – ARENA MONTERREY | MONTERREY, N.L.
NOV 24, 2022 – FORO SOL | MEXICO CITY, CDMX
NOV 25, 2022 – FORO SOL | MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
NOV 27, 2022 – PARQUE SALITRE MAGICO | BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA
NOV 29, 2022 – JOCKEY CLUB | LIMA, PERU
DEC 1, 2022 – ESTADIO BICENTENARIO LA FLORIDA | SANTIAGO, CHILE
DEC 3, 2022 – ESTADIO RIVER PLATE | BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
DEC 4, 2022 – ESTADIO RIVER PLATE | BUENOS AIRES, BUENOS AIRES
DEC 6, 2022 – ALLIANZ PARQUE | SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL
DEC 8, 2022 –AREA EXTERNA DA JEUNESSE ARENA | RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
DEC 10, 2022 –PEDREIRA PAULO LEMINSKI | CURITIBA, BRAZIL
FEB 20, 2023 –HBF PARK | PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 24, 2023 –MARVEL STADIUM | MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 25, 2023 – MARVEL STADIUM | MELBOURNE, VIC
FEB 28, 2023 – METRICON STADIUM | GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA
MAR 3, 2023 – ACCOR STADIUM | SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
MAR 4, 2023 – ACCOR STADIUM | SYDNEY, NSW
MAR 7, 2023 – MT SMART STADIUM | AUCKLAND, AUCKLAND
