TicketMasters: How the Public Got Scalped

I just finished this thorough explanation of the volatile and often-times illegal business practices the TicketMaster/Live Nation conglomerate and its progeny use to rake in dollars at the expense of live music fans.  Budnick and Baron's analysis of "secondary ticketing" (otherwise know as coordinated scalping) is equal parts eye-opening and sickening.  


The large portion of the book explaining how ticket brokers like StubHub, ViaGoGo, and the like are able to skirt anti-scalping efforts and earn hundreds of millions of dollars from buying up good seats early and selling them at premium prices is only slightly less aggravating than its revelation that TicketMaster (and certain artists) have historically partnered with scalpers to turn a larger prophet. 

Hit the jump to read the book's press release:

Unlikely Japan

Between work and travel, I haven’t had time to align my thoughts enough to spill any interesting ink.  So, I’ll try this: 

Been consumed lately by Shogun, James Clavell’s epic novel on Japan. 

I’m not one to recommend a book before I finish it, but the first 500 pages have been, as period sagas go, as near perfect as anything I’ve read.  This particular passage struck a chord and I wanted to get it down before the ringing died:

“To think bad thoughts is really the easiest thing in the world. If you leave your mind to itself it will spiral you down into ever-increasing unhappiness. To think good thoughts, however, requires effort. This is one of the things that discipline –training- is about. So train your mind to dwell on sweet perfumes, the touch of this silk, tender raindrops against the shoji, the curve of the flower arrangement, the tranquility of dawn. Then, at length, you won't have to make such a great effort and you will be of value to yourself, a value to our profession- and bring great honor to our world.”

More to follow.