NinjaTickets.com Under DDoS Attack!

We will be back up ASAP. In the mean time, I've had to face how out of date Ninja Ticket's blog is and I'm going to start keeping this up again.

Re Cutler: NFL Offseason Overshadowing Final Four

Bus Cook has orchestrated yet another off season circus. Getting his clients more media attention in the off season of the NFL than perhaps the MLB entering into opening weekend and the final four. Let's break down how this happened:

1. (RUMOR) Josh McDaniels didn't want Cutler because he has diabeties and he drinks.

2. Everyone wanted Cutler because he was young and showed promise.

3. Snyder plus a lot of teams that actually had a QB need, wanted a potential franchise QB.

4. Denver knows how to work other teams trading high profile players.

5. Cook is a jump-ship media "whore".

First off the fact that the NFL offseason could overshadow the MLB AND the Final Four is quite amazing. It took every one of the above list to make it happen.

The Outcome:

The Bears needed a QB, perhaps more than anyone in the league. They have a defense and a solid basis for a team. This move makes sense, I would expect them to make a playoff run

Their ticket prices will also increase, look for a price north of today's $229 average in the future.

The Redskins have dodge a bullet. Campbell has had an opportunity to exude his quiet leadership and I believe it will be a break out year for him. (Check out this Washington Times article.)

The Bucs and Lions were either unable or unwilling to follow the Bears into their Snyder-like-offer for Cutler.

Reznor Predicts Ticket Auctions on the Primary Market

NIN's Reznor has predicted that a TicketMaster LiveNation merger may imply more than just hanging on to ticketing rights to approximately 30% of the venues on TicketMaster. According to Reznor: "My guess as to what will eventually happen if/when Live Nation and TicketMaster merges is that they'll move to an auction or market-based pricing scheme -- which will simply mean it will cost a lot more to get a good seat for a hot show," he wrote. "They will simply become the scalper." (Reuters)

This is an interesting observation and a "silent auction" ticketing method has been used for the major reunion of Led Zeppelin. There are still some hurdles to overcome though including on site ticketing, PSL's, and Season Ticket waiting lists. However, it does appear that such a merger would allow certain major acts to choose how their tickets are sold for tours in multiple venues.

I'm not really sure if this is a boon for consumers. Setting aside a certain number of tickets for such a silent auction while upholding traditional ticketing methods such as direct box office sales and online cues may actually be better for the average user. However, a complete silent auction based system would seemingly limit a consumers ability to buy tickets offline.

It also establishes true market value fairly quickly, albeit for a limited snapshot time. Auctions could easily drive down the price of tickes for unpopular concerts as well as put some tickets at a premium students and young people, who may be willing to sit in line, are unable to afford, potentially aleinating core fans. A silent auction system will likely cut the price differential between primary and secondary tickets.

T.O. Reportedly seen in D.C. after being cut by the cowboys.

So its not much to go on, but for what its worth there are unconfirmed reports from employees of Old Ebbit Grill in DC that T.O. was eating there at dinner on 3/5/09 (reports found on Redskins message board extremeskins.com).

While this conflicts with reports by Redskins beat reporter JLC that the Redskins are not interested in T.O.. Snyder and Drew R have dealt extensively in the past and flying prospects into potential team cities is a tactic that Drew R has uses.

Additionally, T.O. initially wanted to play for the Redskins before signing with the Cowboys after his stint as an Eagle.

Why any Stimulus Package isn't Enough. Why we should be focusing on killing hyperconsumerism.

I was reading through CNNMoney.com today and I saw a headline with this quote, "Saving more might sound like a good plan, but if everyone does that, it'll only make matters worse." This one quote expresses all that is currently wrong with the US economy. The US economy is too heavily dependent on consumer spending. The levels of consumption are unsustainable, both in volume and the speed of wealth transfer.

The US, especially big business, has become "lazy" and has marketed products aimed squarely at a small minority of the world's population that currently controls much of the world's wealth. In theory this is the ideal market to target; however, this market is almost completely saturated.

As I see it there are two paths out of this hole that the modern world finds itself in. The first is to begin R&D on more sustainable and truly beneficial technologies. I'm not talking about faster processors or cars. I'm not even talking about single or multistage carbon dioxide scrubbers for automobiles that have to be refreshed every six months to a year (although they would be helpful). I'm talking about the real desire to build technologies that will drastically reshape the way we use energy and food. These technologies may reshape the corporate landscape but its not an excuse to hold off on them any longer. Real development needs to go into things like sustainable and cost effective fusion (this isn't a fantasy anymore, the processing power and technological leaps in lasers and capacitors make fusion something we need to focus on). Technologies such as these can help us pull our way out of this current depression.

The second way we can get out of this downturn is to start targeting the vast majority of people who have the least amount of money. We should stop paying farmers to not grow food but rather start hammering out new distribution methods and models to pay farmers to grow this food for consumption in impoverished areas. Modular home builders should consider building ultra-low cost modular and/or kit homes that can be delivered to these same areas.

We need to evaluate the current meltdown in terms of the goals of currency and of humanity as a whole. I'm not against being wealthy or capitalism; however, I feel that the market has been slow to realize it has been targeting oversaturated markets. At the same time, many people in the world go hungry.

As the CEO and Co-Founder of NinjaTickets.com, I might be throwing stones from a glass house. I do feel that we are providing an altruistic role as a consumer advocate in an industry that is all too often dominated by monopolistic practices. Additionally I have strived to ensure that NinjaTickets.com is a responsible citizen of the world even from its inception. Our first marketing materials also shared space with information about various charities. NinjaTickets.com also donates a portion of profits to charities, such as Heifer, which focus on sustainable giving. NinjaTickets.com is a carbon-neutral company.

I encourage all of our users to use NinjaTickets.com to find the best seats they can at the price point they can truly afford. It is my goal (and the goal of NinjaTickets.com) to continue to provide real solutions to help consumers find the best tickets at the best prices.