Dropping the ball could hurt UM in the long run

Ticket Sales 101: When you say concert tickets will be available at The Source, Worden’s Market and Southgate Mall, make sure they are.

This seems like a no-brainer, but apparently the concept didn’t reach the Adams Center in time for Wednesday’s sale of tickets for Elton John’s Sept. 28 concert.

After going to great lengths to explain their bizarre wristband lottery system, Adams Center director Mary Muse watched helplessly as the system deteriorated before her eyes, leaving UM students and Missoula residents ticket-less and seething.

In a rightfully apologetic statement released Wednesday evening, Muse explained that all tickets came from one ticket inventory. Translation: no tickets were set aside to be purchased in person. In an age when thousands of people can purchase tickets almost instantly on the Internet, this lack of foresight is appalling.

Admittedly, the Kaimin ran a headline yesterday stating that having a wristband didn’t guarantee you a ticket. But you’d think that the person whose wristband number got picked first would actually stand a fighting chance at scoring seats.

The already-miserable situation was compounded by the unwillingness of many UM officials to comment on how things went so wrong. Rumors swirled around campus, and will continue to until UM starts opening up. To be fair, UM Vice President for Administration and Finance Bob Duringer did agree to an interview, only to crassly show our reporter the door when she questioned the administration’s role in the fiasco.

This is all in stark contrast to the lead-up to last year’s Rolling Stones concert. Tickets were relatively easy to obtain, and a number of tickets were set aside for students at a discounted rate. We’ll see how many UM students can scrounge up several hundred dollars to purchase tickets on eBay this time around.

Aside from angering Elton fans, Wednesday’s ticketing meltdown won’t bode well for UM. Not only has the University lost credibility with local concertgoers, it has also potentially damaged its ability to attract large acts in the future. The revenue from these acts is considerable; the Rolling Stones generated about $100,000 UM. This misstep could cost the University in the future.

The Adams Center used a wristband lottery system to discourage fans from camping out for tickets. But after the plan dissolved, perhaps it’s fitting that reporters – Kaimin and others – camped outside the Adams Center Wednesday evening looking for answers.

Seriously, UM, what happened?