Live Music Suffers Rare Slump
Money spent on tickets in 2010 falls for the first time in a decade
According to the NME the amount of money spent on face value rock and pop gig tickets fell for the first time in a decade last year.
Figures released by The Performing Rights Society (PRS) For Music state that music fans spent 12% less on face value tickets in 2010 compared with 2009.
The slump has been largely attributed to the fact that bands such as the Rolling Stones and Take That did not tour last year, while acts such as Rod Stewart and Kings Of Leon took their tours around arenas rather than stadia.
The report says:
"It would be very tempting to look at these numbers and jump towards a knee jerk reaction that the live music bubble has burst. We should not. Instead, we should develop a broader understanding of the dynamics at play in the market."
It's extremely likely that 2011 will be substantially better than 2010 in terms of ticket revenue, with some major tours already having taken place so far (not least that record breaking set of Take That stadium dates) but it's interesting to see that despite rising ticket prices revenues are perhaps not quite as strong as the music industry would hope.
The news comes not too long after the PRS reported that the money going to musicians in the UK from music royalties fell by £7 million in 2010. It's the first time a drop had ever been recorded.