Walmart and Ticketmaster: Are We Missing Something?

posted in: Music News

Walmart recently announced that they would be partnering with Ticketmaster to allow customers to buy tickets at various locations. Walmart stores in California, New York, New Jersey, Texas, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Florida will feature kiosks so that store-goers can browse concerts and events and purchase available tickets. Yup, that’s really all there is to it. It’s big news because the two companies involved are so well known but, honestly,  we don’t really get it.

Ticketmaster’s CEO explained that “By integrating ticketing into Walmart stores, we are able to offer fans this very convenient way to learn about upcoming events, purchase and take home tickets without ever leaving their neighborhoods”. Wait, isn’t that what the Internet is for? Unless you don’t have a computer and access to the internet, Ticketmaster has already made purchasing tickets as easy as physically possible. Leave your neighborhood? You don’t even need to leave your room. Browse events and buy your tickets online, print them out straight from your computer and you’re done. There really doesn’t seem like much of a point to or clear advantage of using these new Ticketmaster kiosks.

Yes, it looks like Walmart will get some exclusive deals through Ticketmaster for certain events. But, is exclusivity enough for the whole thing to really be worth it? Although there aren’t too many details yet, it’s likely that the same ridiculous service charges that Ticketmaster is known for will apply to tickets bought in person. After all, they’ll need to cover printing physical tickets as well as working the actual machines. Not to mention, these kiosks are not entirely self-service. A Walmart employee will be required to confirm each transaction made by a customer using the Ticketmaster kiosks.

It all seems kind of silly and unnecessary. In a way, it’s almost a step backwards, in that it complicates the process of buying tickets. There’s almost no need to go out to a store to buy tickets when it can be done in the comfort of your own home.

Would you use the Ticketmaster kiosks? Let us know!