Law goes global in bid to cut concert ticket prices
Clear Channel Entertainment's Don Law has a new title -- and a new goal. The Boston-based promoter has for the past few years been the company's co-CEO, but now will assume an expanded role as chairman of global music. What that means for consumers is that he's been given a broader mandate to negotiate with artists and managers to reduce high ticket prices. Skyrocketing prices have been blamed for an uneven concert summer after two record years in the industry.
"It's the main issue of our strategic plan," Law says of Clear Channel's effort to roll back ticket prices. "It's the biggest single challenge that we have."
Until now, Law has focused primarily on the North American market, but he is adding the European market to his responsibilities. "Many tours are now worldwide, like Madonna, U2, and the Rolling Stones," he says. "And we need to address [ticket prices] globally."
Clear Channel has increasingly acknowledged that it has a vested interest in keeping ticket prices down, especially because it owns and operates many concert sheds and amphi-
theaters where revenue streams don't just come from ticket sales (which mostly go to the artists), but from food concessions, T-shirt merchandising, and parking. "I hope he's successful at it," Gary Bongiovanni, editor of the trade magazine Pollstar, said of Law's new mission. "And obviously that will do wonders for Clear Channel's bottom line as well. They spent too much money to buy up tours that didn't always work out. That's been the rap against Clear Channel. They were using their checkbook to drive up the price [of the tour guarantees], so it's good to see they're doing something about it."
Word in the industry was that Law and fellow Clear Channel CEO Dave Lucas might be pushed out of their jobs and "kicked upstairs" in the wake of the company's tough summer. Law says his new role is a promotion. Lucas's new role has not been announced.
"The story has come out in pieces and that has looked a little weird," Law said, "but the [new job] has been something that I've been anxious to do." No other officials at Clear Channel returned calls yesterday.
Whether with Clear Channel or, previously, with his regional Don Law Company and Tea Party Concerts, Law has sought to keep ticket prices in check in hopes of increasing the number of people who attend events.
"Obviously, our business is a volume business," Law said. "The good news is that we have talked some artists into being more price sensitive and it's paid off. Last summer, James Taylor agreed to go out and keep his prices the same as they were in 2001 -- and he wound up doing the biggest tour he's ever done. He made more money and attracted more people because he kept his prices down.
"No one is immune today from this issue, not even the Madonnas of the world," said Law. "My job will be to ask, `How can we do things differently? And what will the business model look like in setting certain pricing limits?' Sure, we expect some push-back from the artists, but it's something that we all have to do."
