Broadway.com a rip off?- Page 2

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 3/1/16 at 10:40pm

And that's what Paul is counting on. It's sick.

[MarkBearSF]

Posted: 3/1/16 at 10:49pm

@z5 said: "Your friend is really nice, but obviously not the brightest of them all if she spent that much on mezz tickets without looking elsewhere. "

 

If only everyone could be as omniscient as you.
Yes. I'll almost instinctively start thinking, "Shubert house = telecharge = AmEx, Nederlander = ticketmaster = Citi" but most people aren't so savvy. Considering broadway.com's place in search results and the webpages it presents, I'd honestly be surprised if most people don't get suckered in. 

Whenever people ask me for advice, or I do a write-up, I emphasize and repeat "Friends do not let friends purchase tickets at broadway.com"

I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop on broadwaybox.com since they bought it.

 

Updated On: 3/1/16 at 10:49 PM

[NJ_BroadwayGirl]

Posted: 3/1/16 at 11:51pm

I've had the same gift certificate problem too - with two different friends. I didn't have the heart to tell them that I can't get very far with their gift. 

[ACL2006]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 1:09am

their fees are waived if you buy last minute or day of tickets. had a gift certificate years ago and waited until the day of to buy my tickets.

[mpkie]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 2:12am

Gosh, so sorry to hear that. Honestly it takes experience to know who/what you're dealing with when it comes to this kind of thing. The first time I crossed paths with broadway.com as someone who basically knew nothing about theater and never purchased Broadway tickets before, I thought it was actually an official representative for Broadway and not a third party reseller. The prices scared me enough to not purchase any tickets there. But also nearly scared me away from ever seeing any Broadway shows. I'm still not a fan of Telecharge and Ticketmaster, they still charge too high of a fee and multiple fees, but at least they are the official online ticket sellers and the better option when you can't get yourself to the box office.

 

Honestly, it's surprising no ambitious lawyer has attempted a class action lawsuit against broadway.com, as there is no justification for the amount of fees levied. Like others said, they do what they can to conceal that they're third party and not actually representing Broadway. It's pretty deceitful, especially with a name like that.

[Hellob]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 2:34am

Maybe they can contact the cc company and dispute it since they thought they were buying from the regular ticket seller and didn't realize it was a 3rd party. It was an honest mistake and worth a try. 

[RaiseYouUp]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 4:21pm

The only time I ever got a good priced ticket on Broadway.com was for Curious Incident. I would never recommend them.

[Jshan05]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 4:33pm

Thanks for (mostly) kind words, people! My friend was able to get a full refund thankfully! She then used that money to purchase from telecharge...we were very lucky with this situation! Anyways, I had a long conversation with her about it so from here on out she will know much better about where to buy! :)

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 5:46pm

The idea that a person is just supposed to know what a mezanine ticket costs or else they are "stupid" or not "too bright" is a classic example of people thinking that because they know something everyone else should know it. I know incredibly bright people who have no idea what a ticket for a Broadway show costs; similarly, I know very dimwitted people who know to go through Telecharge. Clearly Broadway.com, a horrible site, is designed to dupe people who are not typical theatregoers.

[mpkie]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 6:43pm

Yay! Happy ending! Could you share how she managed to get a refund? I wouldn't have expected them to be accommodating. Did she have ticket insurance?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 6:55pm

My friend was able to get a full refund thankfully!

 

How?

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 11:00pm

They make buckets of money. An acquaintance of mine used to work in their ticketing department, and they earn commission on those sales. 
 

It's even worse (or equally worse) when shows use them as their only group sales agent, because any discounts that come by way of buying as a group are negated by their egregious fees.
 

There are scalping laws that restrict increased prices on resales (right?) but when shows WILLINGLY partner with them as a ticketing agent, what's the unwitting public to do? Until organizations - LOOKING AT YOU, SHUBERT ORG - decide to stop doing business with them, this will continue to happen.

Updated On: 3/2/16 at 11:00 PM

[Pootie2]

Posted: 3/2/16 at 11:39pm

veronicamae said: "There are scalping laws that restrict increased prices on resales (right?) "

 

Nope. Otherwise we wouldn't be seeing the 200-300% Hamilton markups.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 12:10am

I've always heard that their group sales division was pretty good. 

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 12:57am

Pootie2 said: "veronicamae said: "There are scalping laws that restrict increased prices on resales (right?) "

Nope. Otherwise we wouldn't be seeing the 200-300% Hamilton markups."

Ah, touche.

(But really though - I thought there were laws?? Off to Google I go.)

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 1:34am

No but really, how did she convince them to offer a full refund? You'd think they'd at least keep credit card processing fees.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 10:33am

But really though - I thought there were laws??

 

There used to be. In 2007, anti-scalping laws were abolished in New York (I'm guessing mainly because they didn't actually do anything to stop the practice except prevent "safer" resellers like StubHub). There is no federal regulation about ticket reselling.

 

More information: http://nysbar.com/blogs/EASL/2010/07/reselling_tickets_in_new_york.html

Updated On: 3/3/16 at 10:33 AM

[Hairspray0901]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 10:47am

I actually just used their group sales to purchase tickets for Waitress. I'm fairly disappointed. I purchased 12 "rear orchestra" tickets for a performance in July. After looking at their availability, they had literally every seat in the rear orchestra available (rows N-P center, left, right) but I was given seats all the way on the side of the orchestra, seats 23, 25...) I later learned telecharge does group sales as well as Nederlander themselves. I only went to Broadway.com because they were what appeared on Waitress' official website. Ugh. Kicking myself. 

[Jshan05]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 12:31pm

There was a link at the bottom of her confirmation email letting her know about cancellation insurance. She followed the steps it said to take (I believe she just emailed them) and she was able to get the full refund because she contacted them so quickly. She emailed them probably 2-3 hours after the initial purchase, so I think the time was the most important piece in getting the refund!