http://www.techdirt.com/ Easily digestible tech news.... http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120921/15010920465/switzerland-questions-crazy-hollywood-claims-about-file-sharing-ends-up-congressional-watchlist.shtml#c1336 Tue, 25 Sep 2012 08:37:34 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120921/15010920465/switzerland-questions-crazy-hollywood-claims-about-file-sharing-ends-up-congressional-watchlist.shtml#c1336 http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c1085 Sun, 8 Jul 2012 03:54:01 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c1085 "When the people staging the show receive the money actually matters very little, as if something is guaranteed to sell out, it doesn't matter if it happens now or later, especially with a limited good like ticket sales."

Really? If they're paying for staging the show with the ticket sales I'd say it matters a great deal when they get the money.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c1043 Sat, 7 Jul 2012 03:40:33 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c1043
Time is also the factor for the people buying the tickets. They might not have enough time to queue/wait on the phone/sit hitting reload to buy the tickets from the official seller. They might not know at release if they'll be able to attend a show in six months. These people a willing to pay a premium to buy their tickets later.

The stagers don't want to have to deal with people who buy tickets on release but then find they cannot attend the event - it represents an extra cost. Scalpers also pay a role here, they'll buy those tickets (or those people will become "scalper" themselves).

I would like to note that I am note arguing against what Loius CK is doing. I am arguing against the position that scalpers (resellers) have no role to play.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c587 Fri, 6 Jul 2012 04:50:23 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/casestudies/articles/20120704/02451119578/louis-cks-direct-tour-sales-over-6-million-1-week-scalping-drops-25-to-below-1.shtml#c587 want them to sell out. The events will take place months after the tickets first go on sale and the stagers will want to have recouped their costs as soon as possible. Scalpers are absorbing that time risk themselves.

Scalpers also provide a good pricing indicator. If tickets are priced too high scalpers won't buy them (and likely neither will fans). If they're priced too low then scalpers will be making huge margins.

A good article on this is: http://mises.org/daily/3888.

Personally, I believe more experiments need to be made with ticket auctioning. For example, if a ticket reseller (scalper) were allowed to bulk buy tickets (thereby absorbing the risk) and then auction them all at once (in Kickstarter stylus manner).

It is important to note that the scalper in the above example is a risk absorbing middle man. If the artist is willing to take on the risk then that middle man can be bypassed.

Indeed, this is another area where labels can have a future.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20120702/00171019547/dear-judge-koh-competition-is-no-reason-to-ban-phone.shtml#c1057 Tue, 3 Jul 2012 02:17:22 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20120702/00171019547/dear-judge-koh-competition-is-no-reason-to-ban-phone.shtml#c1057
NO-ONE KNOWS WHAT THEY'VE BOUGHT UNTIL THEY GET IT HOME!

SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120308/12004618039/transparency-double-standard-uk-public-inquiry-requests-info-wikileaks.shtml#c218 Mon, 12 Mar 2012 09:21:25 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120308/12004618039/transparency-double-standard-uk-public-inquiry-requests-info-wikileaks.shtml#c218 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120214/03053117754/two-contradictory-paths-uk-when-it-comes-to-copyright-issues.shtml#c302 Thu, 16 Feb 2012 02:58:36 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120214/03053117754/two-contradictory-paths-uk-when-it-comes-to-copyright-issues.shtml#c302 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120215/12143617772/more-details-emerge-questionable-uk-seizure-music-blog.shtml#c458 Thu, 16 Feb 2012 02:38:28 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120215/12143617772/more-details-emerge-questionable-uk-seizure-music-blog.shtml#c458 suspects have no Right to Remain Silent.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120214/11083717758/uk-now-seizing-music-blogs-with-american-domains-over-copyright-claims.shtml#c2382 Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:11:08 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120214/11083717758/uk-now-seizing-music-blogs-with-american-domains-over-copyright-claims.shtml#c2382
What the hell is the Serious Fraud Office for then?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120127/09470817566/when-judges-are-determining-whether-not-art-should-exist-we-have-problem.shtml#c754 Sat, 4 Feb 2012 02:03:29 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120127/09470817566/when-judges-are-determining-whether-not-art-should-exist-we-have-problem.shtml#c754 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120126/03162017547/public-interest-groups-speak-out-about-next-weeks-secret-meeting-hollywood-to-negotiate-tpp-think-international-sopa.shtml#c830 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 01:02:49 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120126/03162017547/public-interest-groups-speak-out-about-next-weeks-secret-meeting-hollywood-to-negotiate-tpp-think-international-sopa.shtml#c830
For the last thirty years Hollywood has made its money by asking the government to protect and enforce its business model. They have no confidence in their product to they use force to get people to buy it. They gave up on the market and demanded a government enforced (and, therefore, artificial) monopoly.

The public decided that Google was in the public interest.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/17260917532/judge-says-americans-can-be-forced-to-decrypt-laptops.shtml#c414 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:00:13 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/17260917532/judge-says-americans-can-be-forced-to-decrypt-laptops.shtml#c414
See the difference now?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/11270917527/what-is-acta-why-is-it-problem.shtml#c293 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:47:42 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/11270917527/what-is-acta-why-is-it-problem.shtml#c293
To think, your ancestor's fought a war of independence so you would never again be royally buggered.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/04252717523/senator-leahy-hands-republicans-gift-giving-them-credit-delaying-vote-pipasopa.shtml#c931 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:33:30 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/04252717523/senator-leahy-hands-republicans-gift-giving-them-credit-delaying-vote-pipasopa.shtml#c931 It's not a strawman, you just have no counterargument because it's true: if there are no safety nets, some unlucky people WILL make mistakes and end up in absolute poverty. There is no way to dispute that.

Your assumption being that if there is no government safety net there is no safety net, as blaktron said:

The idea that just because you take a job away from the Federal Government that it just stops getting done is ridiculous, naive and plain stupid.

As has already been stated charitable giving is higher in countries with lower taxes - the larger the welfare state the less likely people are to give to charity.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/04252717523/senator-leahy-hands-republicans-gift-giving-them-credit-delaying-vote-pipasopa.shtml#c924 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:21:09 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120124/04252717523/senator-leahy-hands-republicans-gift-giving-them-credit-delaying-vote-pipasopa.shtml#c924
You realise that those that want properly free markets are generally against prohibition, right?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120119/13052817473/doj-gives-its-opinion-sopa-unilaterally-shutting-down-foreign-rogue-site-megaupload-without-sopapipa.shtml#c2886 Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:27:36 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120119/13052817473/doj-gives-its-opinion-sopa-unilaterally-shutting-down-foreign-rogue-site-megaupload-without-sopapipa.shtml#c2886
Just because there are few employees does not mean they are not creating jobs.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120116/01350817412/lies-nbcuniversals-rick-cotton-about-sopapipa.shtml#c1156 Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:03:27 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120116/01350817412/lies-nbcuniversals-rick-cotton-about-sopapipa.shtml#c1156 steal the use of "wholesale" from NBCUniversal?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120113/09184917400/us-to-extradite-uk-student-copyright-infringement-despite-site-being-legal-uk.shtml#c2050 Mon, 16 Jan 2012 04:37:20 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120113/09184917400/us-to-extradite-uk-student-copyright-infringement-despite-site-being-legal-uk.shtml#c2050 Hungary) but "committed" in another (e.g. Britain).

Not exactly what most people think the a European Arrest Warrant is for, is it?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120107/01461317324/actress-who-wished-to-remain-anonymous-under-40-is-now-officially-neither.shtml#c162 Tue, 10 Jan 2012 07:57:59 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120107/01461317324/actress-who-wished-to-remain-anonymous-under-40-is-now-officially-neither.shtml#c162 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111108/02450816677/royal-society-claims-1671-copyright-newton-letter-copyright-law-born-29-years-later.shtml#c233 Sat, 3 Dec 2011 02:31:57 PST http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111108/02450816677/royal-society-claims-1671-copyright-newton-letter-copyright-law-born-29-years-later.shtml#c233