Concert sales nearing record amid surge in COVID-19 cases

Concert sales are breaking records amid a surge in COVID-19 cases across the country driven by the delta variant.
Ticketmaster, owned by Live Nation Entertainment, had its fourth-best month ever in regards to ticket sales in June, the company said during an earnings call Tuesday, NBC News reported.
“The momentum for the return to live events has been building every month, with ticket sales and concert attendance pacing faster than expected, underscoring the strength and resiliency of the concert business and live events in general,” Live Nation Entertainment CEO Michael Rapino said.
Ticketmaster’s second-quarter revenue was up to $575.9 million after having a devastating year in 2020, when most large crowd sizes were banned and concerts canceled.
The revenue is up 677 percent from 2020, with the company now taking a $195.7 million net loss. Last year the net loss was at $587.5 million, according to NBC News.
“We expect to have over 3 million fans attend our festivals during the second half of the year, with about two-thirds of our festivals increasing their attendance compared to 2019,” Rapino said. “While still early, we have delivered a strong double digit increase in average per fan revenue and in on-site spending versus 2019 at our amphitheater shows over the past few weeks.”
It is unclear how the delta variant could impact concerts as some coronavirus restrictions such as masks are coming back in place.
Garth Brooks said Tuesday that he is considering rescheduling his tour due to the rise in variant cases.
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