Ticket Reserve

[gottimd]

Has anyone seen or used this (www.ticketreserve.com) website before? Basically, you buy forward contracts for any team competing for a major sporting event. For instance, right now you could buy "Maryland in the 2006 Final Four" for $27. If Maryland makes the Final Four, you get to buy Final Four tickets for face value (plus the loss of your original $27). Guaranteed. If Maryland plays well next year and the "market" price goes up, you can also sell your forward contract to someone else for a profit. The prices shift based on demand, which obviously related to the team's performance. A Louisville fan bought a Final Four contract this year right before the tourney started for $75. Obviously, he was pretty psyched to buy tickets for face value when Louisville eventually made it. For instance you can buy "Ravens in the 2006 Super Bowl" for $100. If the Ravens make the Super Bowl, you get to buy Super Bowl tickets for face value. Obviously if the team doesn't make the game you bought and you didn't sell your contract beforehand, you would lose your money. It's an amazing site that combines a pseudo-stock market with gambling. Check it out.

[wbatl1]

How do they get the tickets. Aren't most of the tickets to these events given to the teams involved and/or the leagues/associations/ncaa?

[sovereignstar]

How can they guarantee Super Bowl tickets like that?

[st.cronin]

It's a scalper's market.

[VPI97]

A buddy of mine at work used this and hoped for Falcons tickets in the Super Bowl...he was happy to get the opportunity regardless of losing money in the end. There's no college football on it, though, so meh from me.

[Desnudo]

That's a brilliant idea, if they can generate enough cash flow.

[Desnudo]

The reserve price for Patriots Super Bowl tickets is $300. The Eagles are $575. :eek: San Francisco is $19 and Chicago is $25. :)

Of course, if SF or Chicago made it, would anyone want to watch?

[ShaqFu]

Interesting concept, though I would be wary as to how legitimate any tickets you got were. What are Dolphins Super Bowl tickets and Miami Final Four tickets going for?

[Desnudo]

Interesting concept, though I would be wary as to how legitimate any tickets you got were. What are Dolphins Super Bowl tickets and Miami Final Four tickets going for?

$19 and $9. Remembering that is the price to buy them at face value later, not the actual ticket price.

[ShaqFu]

If I'm understanding this correctly, you apparently are buying these tickets from ticketholders. Is that a correct assumption? You are buying the right to buy the ticket off someone selling them. The site keeps their money. Ticketholder gets theirs.

[sooner333]

If I'm understanding this correctly, you apparently are buying these tickets from ticketholders. Is that a correct assumption? You are buying the right to buy the ticket off someone selling them. The site keeps their money. Ticketholder gets theirs.

I'm thinking that you are buying the rights to the tickets that the site, or other contracted scalpers, have. Once you buy the right, you can lose money if that team doesn't make it, unless you sell the rights before the team is eliminated. If the team makes it, you still lose your money, but you can purchase tickets at face value...which would either be valuable to you for going to the game at a cheaper price, or selling them for more money than your combined purchase of "the rights" and the face value of the tickets.

[Ragone]

How much are stanley cup finals tickets for the Lightning?

[gottimd]

Think of it as putting a non-refundable deposit down on a seat(s) for a championship event. In certain cases, if you love a crappy team, it will cost next to nothing to put your non-refundable deposit down. Then, as the time approaches, and your crappy team actually might make the superbowl, you are holding the rights to a ticket, and you can sell these rights at any price based on demand, and possibly make money that way (aka stock market). If you hold onto the ticket, and your team makes it, you can get a superbowl ticket for face value.

Or you can not do a damn thing and try and get superbowl tickets at some inflated price.

[JeeberD]

$16 share for UTEP in the Final Four? Interesting...

[Ksyrup]

How much have Vikings tickets gone up since the Tice thing broke? :)

[Desnudo]

If I'm understanding this correctly, you apparently are buying these tickets from ticketholders. Is that a correct assumption? You are buying the right to buy the ticket off someone selling them. The site keeps their money. Ticketholder gets theirs.

I don't know where the tickets come from, it doesn't matter as long as they are real. You are buying the right to later pay face value for a ticket that normally costs many times that. I'd assume they'd buy tickets in bulk from whatever source was least expensive, likely a ticket broker.

[sooner333]

Yeah, I mean, they really don't have to even have many tickets. They could have 20 and sell 5 options for each team to the final four. They aren't making money on the tickets, but on the offering of the options.

[Hurst2112]

How much have Vikings tickets gone up since the Tice thing broke? :)

snare-snare...cymbal

[Craptacular]

I wish all tickets had a sensor that detected when they were sold for more than face value, and then instantaneously exploded, killing both parties. I think the ticket scalper / broker is one of the lowest forms of life ... but then there's Ticketmaster.

[Desnudo]

I think that would make people less likely to attend sporting events, the knowing they might die.