It's no secret that this year's tour by the Backstreet Boys has been one of pop's hottest tickets. So hot, in fact, that passes to their Halloween concert exchanged hands outside Denver's Pepsi Center for a reputed $110 each. Not a bad mark-up on seats with a face value of $38.50.
Concerned over such scalping, the Backstreet Boys hired private investigators to find out why over a thousand tickets had gotten into the hands of the illegal vendors. And the shamuses made an unusual finding. The tickets were actually venue-controlled seats, meaning that they were unavailable for retail. The scalpers could only have obtained the tickets directly from the promoter.
The Backstreet Boys have challenged the Denver promoter House of Blues to account for how so many tickets ended up being sold through the unauthorized dealers for such astronomical prices.
They're also asking that the House of Blues make a donation of $75,000 to the Columbine College Fund to make amends for their negligence. The College Fund has been set up to provide financial assistance for students and siblings affected by the Littleton, CO massacre earlier this year.
The House of Blues replied to the challenge with a statement saying, "We are launching an investigation and upon completion of the investigation we will take appropriate action."
In their own statement, the Boys said, "We've done everything we can to prevent scalping, from limiting the number of tickets purchased to distributing wristbands. To think scalping of this type occurred at the Denver show infuriated us. With us, the fans always come first and anything that compromises our connection with them will always be addressed and properly investigated. We were horrified to learn that our fans in Denver were manipulated and ripped off this way."
In keeping with their desire to protect the fans, the Backstreet Boys are taking measures against scalpers for the dates on their forthcoming Spring 2000 tour. Tickets will be sold via the Internet in an auction. The profits from the tickets are going to go to a charity decided on by the Boys themselves. According to the statement, this will allow fans to get excellent seats and give money to a worthy cause.
The Boys will still keep a beady eye out for rip-offs of all kinds (except maybe at their merchandising stalls) at the remaining dates of their tour. The Boys continue gigging this year through the following dates ...
November 26
Lexington, KY - Rupp Arena
November 27
Lexington, KY - Rupp Arena
November 28
Knoxville, TN - Thompson-Boling Arena
November 29
Nashville, TN - Gaylord Entertainment Center
December 1
Orlando, FL - Orlando Arena
December 2
Tampa, FL - Ice Palace
December 5
Fort Lauderdale, FL - National Car Rental Center
December 6
Fort Lauderdale, FL - National Car Rental Center
