Jeff Graham is running a piece in USA Today about the importance of touring in the digital age. Focusing the article on Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Graham notes that 70 percent of the band's revenue comes from touring, vs. about 20 percent from CD sales. And while you can't download MP3s from the band's Web site, the message board does function as a sanctioned community space for arranging trades of live shows.
The touring business has been hurting this summer, but not for Fleck.
Several high-profile tours were canceled — including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and the Lollapalooza all-star festival — as consumers rebelled against high ticket prices. Business dropped 20% to 50% in April, from the same time a year earlier ''and has yet to come back,'' says Gary Bongiovanni, editor in chief of trade magazine Pollstar.
But Fleck says, ''We're not feeling it yet. Considering how bad the business is supposed to be, we're not doing that bad. Our fan base is loyal.''
Consumers also can afford his shows.
Fleck's average ticket price this summer is $35, but tickets are often available for less. In Deer Valley, they were just $18. An upcoming show at Paramount's Kings Island theme park in Ohio is $27.50, and roller coasters and other rides are included with the ticket purchase.
Superstars use touring as a way to make a chunk of cash fast. Madonna grossed $44.9 million for 21 shows, according to Pollstar, playing to more than 250,000 people. Average ticket price: $174.17, says Pollstar. The reunited Simon and Garfunkel sold $12.2 million in tickets for 14 shows and played to 871,428 people.
