The "race is on among ticketing companies," including
Ticketmaster.com, Tickets.com and Admission Network, to give
consumers the "option of printing out their tickets" to
sports events, concerts and movies from their PCs, according
to Rhonda Rundle of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Sports teams
are also "moving quickly to get ready," as they are
"intrigued by the new revenue possibilities created by
print-it-yourself" tickets. By allowing users to print
tickets, teams could offer "cheaper prices at the last
minute to fill empty seats," a practice similar to that of
airlines. Additionally, as print-it-yourself tickets would
be in a "larger format," sports venues "could attract
advertising" from restaurants and other businesses, which
"might offer promotional coupons printed right on" the
tickets. MLB Giants VP/Ticket Services Russ Stanley, whose
team "may start accepting" home-printed tickets in 2001,
said conventional tickets are "so small compared to all the
information we would like to get to our customers. ... [The
larger format] lets us tell you where to park and what gate
to enter. It lets us tell you about upcoming games and our
kids' fan club." But Rundle notes that one "concern"
regarding print-at-home tickets is "how to make sure" they
aren't counterfeited (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 2/17).
