Sisters: Scammers sold us fake tickets to Lady Gaga concert
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TACOMA, Wash. -- There's only one superstar who can make Pearl Reid practically pass out: Lady Gaga.
"I love her. I can't even explain how much I love her. Like," she said, pausing to gasp, "it's crazy!"
So when Gaga announced she'd play the Tacoma Dome, Pearl and her twin sister, Annie Reid, knew they had to be there, and they had to beat the rush.
"She (Pearl) was researching places to get tickets, and she found this site with like pre-sale tickets," Annie said. "We thought, 'Yeah! Get 'em before they get sold out.' We got tickets in the nosebleeds for an outrageous amount of money."
The sisters paid more than $450 for two seats through a ticket broker called I Concert Tickets. They were told the tickets would arrive in the mail on Jan. 7.
But since then, they've learned the company doesn't exist.
"This is a multi-billion dollar industry, and there are a lot of legitimate second-hand ticket sellers out there," said David Quinlan of the Better Business Bureau. "But then you're going to find your scumbags and your scammers, because they don't care that this is a big day for you; they want your money."
It's a scam the BBB sees every year with big concerts and big sporting events. With the Seahawks in the playoffs, ticket brokers are just as busy gearing up for the game.
If you want seats, the BBB says to stick with established sellers like Ticketmaster, Stubhub and PrimeSport. The Seahawks say the only approved ticket reseller for their games is NFL Ticket Exchange.
Look for the "lock" symbol so you know you're on a secure website. And shop around.
Annie and Pearl just assumed they'd have to pay a lot to see their idol.
"Because she's really popular, we were kind of expecting it to be really expensive," Annie said. "It was worth it. It was definitely worth it."
Until the tickets never arrived.
Pearl and Annie have since purchased legitimate tickets in a much better section for a much lower price.
But they want other fans to buy with caution.
"I love her. I can't even explain how much I love her. Like," she said, pausing to gasp, "it's crazy!"
So when Gaga announced she'd play the Tacoma Dome, Pearl and her twin sister, Annie Reid, knew they had to be there, and they had to beat the rush.
"She (Pearl) was researching places to get tickets, and she found this site with like pre-sale tickets," Annie said. "We thought, 'Yeah! Get 'em before they get sold out.' We got tickets in the nosebleeds for an outrageous amount of money."
The sisters paid more than $450 for two seats through a ticket broker called I Concert Tickets. They were told the tickets would arrive in the mail on Jan. 7.
But since then, they've learned the company doesn't exist.
"This is a multi-billion dollar industry, and there are a lot of legitimate second-hand ticket sellers out there," said David Quinlan of the Better Business Bureau. "But then you're going to find your scumbags and your scammers, because they don't care that this is a big day for you; they want your money."
It's a scam the BBB sees every year with big concerts and big sporting events. With the Seahawks in the playoffs, ticket brokers are just as busy gearing up for the game.
If you want seats, the BBB says to stick with established sellers like Ticketmaster, Stubhub and PrimeSport. The Seahawks say the only approved ticket reseller for their games is NFL Ticket Exchange.
Look for the "lock" symbol so you know you're on a secure website. And shop around.
Annie and Pearl just assumed they'd have to pay a lot to see their idol.
"Because she's really popular, we were kind of expecting it to be really expensive," Annie said. "It was worth it. It was definitely worth it."
Until the tickets never arrived.
Pearl and Annie have since purchased legitimate tickets in a much better section for a much lower price.
But they want other fans to buy with caution.
you can usually protect yourself against ticket fraud by using a credit card. with the cost of education rising, $450 is not a bad price to pay for such a valuable lesson @mindful_mktgÂ
Suckers!!!! Welcome to the school of hard knocks.
They shouldn't be supporting those unscrupulous companies reselling for profit in the first place.  Way to perpetuate the problem girls! Â
lady gaga $450.00 bucks? LMAO Tickets for 900 people @ $450.00 is too much. Has anyone figured out what sex this thing is?
 @Gigi http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i23qGLw3H_Y
Â
Bossip.com alleged that Gaga said this when asked about the subject:
"It's not something that I'm ashamed of, just isn't something that I go around telling everyone. Yes. I have both male and female genitalia, but I consider myself a female. It's just a little bit of a penis and really doesn't interfere much with my life. The reason I haven't talked about it is that it's not a big deal to me.Â
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Funny how scalping has been illegal forever but reselling is different? It's so frustrating that you go to the authorized ticket seller, ie Ticketmaster, and they sell out in 2 minutes because resellers buy them in blocks of hundreds and the rest of us get to pay additional markup on top of the one the thieving Ticketmaster charges. Make markups illegal. Sale should only be legal at the face price.
 @PBFloyd Actually, at least in Seattle, scalping tickets was legalized in 2005 and is legal statewide in many states.
$450 for concert tickets? I would comment on "how dumb" you have to be to spend that much money on concert tickets, but then again we're talking about Lady Gaga fans so the bar didn't exist to begin with.
I want to be these girls neighbors. If they can throw money away like that, I need to be right there going through their trash every morning.Â
Please, tell me, how what appears to be teenage girls (or not much older) could afford over $450.00 for the first purchase of the bogus tickets and then purchase two more legit tickets? Rich mommy & daddy? Must be nice to be so privileged.
That was an expensive lesson to learn. I don't buy tickets from anywhere except Ticketmaster or Stubhub.
That's a hard lesson to learn. Keep it with you always.
You can avoid this kind of problem by checking the "company" you found against the BBB and even that is no guarantee. Checking with BBB is better than going on faith especially when you're going to lay out that kind of money. I tend to stick with companies that are well known when I'm on the internet.
Ever hear of Google? You can usually weed out fraudulent companies by doing a simple internet search. Just sayin'....Â
These people aren't victims, they just lack total common sense. Sorry girls if you are reading this. We all learn lessons like this. Enjoy your concert, keep your heads up and learn from this mistake.Â
 @lakeview I am willing to bet they become the most diligent shoppers in the future when it comes to checking out companies. It sucks that it happened to them, but hopefully the lesson will carry over throughout the rest of their lives, and will save them more in the long run.Â
I paid $498 for 2 floor VIP. I would never pay 450 for nosebleeds. >.>
 @chaotic4squirrl Everyone has their limits I suppose. I wouldn't pay $498 for two VIP floor seats, or $450 for nosebleed, but I'd drop $500.00 on a something equally as frivolous. Then again, I wouldn't rule out doing that. lol I just can't think of an artist worth forking that kind of money out for. I just get angry when they try to get us to pay outrageous amounts for their shows, so I tend to pass on the artists that scr*w over their fans with those prices. Scalpers are a whole other issue.... Â
Good lord - $450 for 2 seats? Â That's insanity. Â She's not worth that. Â
 @JusticeSeeker Agreed!
I do not care WHO or WHAT, I'd never pay that much for tickets to anything. Â Even *IF* they had been real tickets it STILL would have been robbery (in my opinion). Â <GRIN>
Wow, $450 for a pair of concert tickets... I am truly out of touch with today's pop culture. I don't remember ever paying more than $20 for an arena concert in early '80s. This is way beyond inflation. Â
Missing a Lady Gaga concert will make you a better person. She is no "lady"
 @al_wa *READING* the article will help you write informed comments. "Pearl and Annie have since purchased legitimate tickets in a much better section for a much lower price."
As for whether or not she's a "lady," how many Lady Gaga concerts have you attended?
Oh, that's right, you just magically know everything.
 @Fooey Patooey! "READING" my comment would lead to the conclusion my comment was general and not specific. Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (Lady Gaga) is a marketing genius, hence $450 seats, but on stage she is no "lady". Off stage I have no idea. I would be disappointed if my Granddaughter told me "I love her. I can't even explain how much I love her. Like," she said, pausing to gasp, "it's crazy!"