New Stadium seat relocation info

[BBombers85]

Would you guys rather deal with the problem of having bad seats at Yankee Stadium as a Yankee fan, or would you rather have the problem of not even being able to get tickets (Red Sox fans)?

[ccsuwxman]

I think the source of most of the relocation problems lies in the way in which it was (and is) being done.

Rather than try and get so many existing partials to bump up to FS, the Yankees should have :

First--relocated all existing FS ticket holders WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Second--relocated all existing B-plan holders to 41-game plans WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Third--relocated all existing Partial plan holders to comparable locations (bearing in mind the reconfiguration of the stadium).

THEN, after doing all that (which only should have taken a month or so), THEN they should have offered existing plan holders (FS, then B, then Partials, in that order, and then via seniority within each plan) the opportunity to upgrade to FS, or 41-game.

Once that had been completed, they could have opened up the stadium to new plans, either FS or partials. They would most certainly have sold as many plans as they are selling now, but they would NOT have pissed off so many long-time customers, at every plan level. In addition, the entire RELOCATION process would have been done weeks ago.

As a D-plan holder (as all of you already know), I'm still waiting for my assignment (which I hope will be somewhere within the boundaries of what I asked for in the relocation questionnaire).

[steveatrich]

Originally Posted by yankeesrule

I think another issue on why this has been somewhat disastrous is that the ticket office has never done this before.. in fact, no ticket office has ever done this before. Sure, there have been relocations in the past, but how many teams in ANY sport that has gone through a relocation have had the demand that the Yankees do right now for season tickets and partial plans? I don't think even they realized how many people would upgrade to full season and when so many did, they were stuck and now it is the 41 game plans paying for that. It's not an excuse as I can definitely think of things they could have done better, however considering the circumstances, it's hard to blame the Yankees for it. And when we were filling out the questionnaire all those months ago, things seemed like they should go smoothly. The real test will be in the upcoming years to see how they try to move people back to better seats as people cancel or change plans.

They established a relocation guide with specific procedures and seniority qualifications to get ticket plans. They then sold full seasons to any plan holder regardless of seniority or qualification. They stated all Plan B holders would be offered 41 game plans and didn't honor that. It's not hard to blame them since they didn't follow their own rules. No excuses for that.

[aknnav]

Originally Posted by ccsuwxman

I think the source of most of the relocation problems lies in the way in which it was (and is) being done.

Rather than try and get so many existing partials to bump up to FS, the Yankees should have :

First--relocated all existing FS ticket holders WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Second--relocated all existing B-plan holders to 41-game plans WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Third--relocated all existing Partial plan holders to comparable locations (bearing in mind the reconfiguration of the stadium).

THEN, after doing all that (which only should have taken a month or so), THEN they should have offered existing plan holders (FS, then B, then Partials, in that order, and then via seniority within each plan) the opportunity to upgrade to FS, or 41-game.

Once that had been completed, they could have opened up the stadium to new plans, either FS or partials. They would most certainly have sold as many plans as they are selling now, but they would NOT have pissed off so many long-time customers, at every plan level. In addition, the entire RELOCATION process would have been done weeks ago.

As a D-plan holder (as all of you already know), I'm still waiting for my assignment (which I hope will be somewhere within the boundaries of what I asked for in the relocation questionnaire).

This process certainly makes sense, but runs contrary to what the team is trying accomplish. They need to maximize revenue during the first two years of this stadium and that is precisely why so many full season plans were sold and pushed. Notwithstanding the greed comments made earlier, you can't blame a business for generating a strong balance sheet, and that is what they hoped to do. The logistics behind this forecast failed to consider terrible market conditions, and an otherwised collapsed economy when this was planned out. They decided that people spending the most money would be given the greatest choice, and not offering all FS to start would negate that purpose. That said, they still have to balance fairness with earnings and how they do that remains to be seen.

I fully expect that things will fall into place after this inaugral season is complete and people begin to move around again. It won't take long for people to move into optimal seats within the next 2-4 years.

[ymike673]

Originally Posted by BBombers85

Would you guys rather deal with the problem of having bad seats at Yankee Stadium as a Yankee fan, or would you rather have the problem of not even being able to get tickets (Red Sox fans)?

Fenway only holds 36,000 people so you really can't compare the two.

[ymike673]

Originally Posted by ccsuwxman

I think the source of most of the relocation problems lies in the way in which it was (and is) being done.

Rather than try and get so many existing partials to bump up to FS, the Yankees should have :

First--relocated all existing FS ticket holders WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Second--relocated all existing B-plan holders to 41-game plans WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.

Third--relocated all existing Partial plan holders to comparable locations (bearing in mind the reconfiguration of the stadium).

THEN, after doing all that (which only should have taken a month or so), THEN they should have offered existing plan holders (FS, then B, then Partials, in that order, and then via seniority within each plan) the opportunity to upgrade to FS, or 41-game.

Once that had been completed, they could have opened up the stadium to new plans, either FS or partials. They would most certainly have sold as many plans as they are selling now, but they would NOT have pissed off so many long-time customers, at every plan level. In addition, the entire RELOCATION process would have been done weeks ago.

As a D-plan holder (as all of you already know), I'm still waiting for my assignment (which I hope will be somewhere within the boundaries of what I asked for in the relocation questionnaire).

Had the Yankees implemented your plan the Yankees would of::

1-Satisfied must of the OYS plan holders.

2-Still ended up selling out the NYS for most of the games in 2009.

Instead they managed to anger most of their ticket plan holders which could very well come back to haunt the Yankees a few years down the road.

[woodisgood]

I think any argument regarding the Yankees setting high ticket prices has to take into consideration a festering ugly cancer that will never go away: SCALPERS. And with the internet having become such a life-changer in the past decade, their sickening growth will only continue.

How many scalping companies—and let's include those individuals who've learned they can make a buck scalping Yankees tix—bought ticket licenses in the past few years, knowing this day would come? New stadium = greater demand = profits for THEM. Even if they just had a minor plan, all they had to do with the relocation was say "sign me up for a full-season license!" and the Yankees, not having any way (that I can see) to "weed" them out, takes their cash and gives them what they want.

Just take a look at Stubhub alone! C'mon—how many of those people ALREADY SELLING TICKETS are actual fans?? Add in the other scalping companies online. Add in those waiting to unload on eBay and Craigslist. THESE are the people who must share some of the blame for our pain.

Yes, I understand there have been and always will be longtime Yankees fans selling tickets for games they can't go to. But their percentage compared to the scalpers is very very small.

That's what's painful to me—not that I'm getting "shut out" of a better location with my measly little plan. It's painful knowing a LOT of scalpers have taken up many licenses, and they don't give a rat's azz about the license holders who ACTUALLY want to GO to the GAMES. These are the cancers that have taken away better seats all down the line.

If someone can, I'd like to hear your opinion on how the Yankees could have weeded those scalpers out of this process. I can't think of how myself....

[StingrayJG]

Originally Posted by BBombers85

Would you guys rather deal with the problem of having bad seats at Yankee Stadium as a Yankee fan, or would you rather have the problem of not even being able to get tickets (Red Sox fans)?

That's only one of the numerous reasons not to be a sox fan.

[njyankeesfan]

Granted, by selling full season ticket plans, the Yankees have guaranteed their revenue and shifted the risk to the ticket plan holder as far as either using the tickets or having the task of reselling them. And for the first year or two, it might be hard to gauge the impact of the ticket price increases in the home plate areas of the lower levels of the Stadium, since there will be a novelty factor involved.

But those fans who use most of their tickets already know that, for some midweek, cold-weather games against less competitive seats, there were lots of empty, expensive seats at the field level. (I used to admire them longingly from my perch in the upper deck!) So while the ticket price is covered, an empty seat doesn't buy food, beer, souvenirs, parking, etc. and other profitable revenue generators.

[GordonGecko]

Originally Posted by ccsuwxman

I think the source of most of the relocation problems lies in the way in which it was (and is) being done.

Rather than try and get so many existing partials to bump up to FS, the Yankees should have :

First--relocated all existing FS ticket holders WITHOUT upgrading ANYONE.
...

Can't do it. The Yankees added super premium sections at $850 / seat where most no one there paying $250 tops could afford or reasonably be forced to pay. So those people had to be moved to a cheaper section where space had to be made. In that other section, people had to be relocated too, so they got pushed out. To push out as little FS holders as possible, the odd man out is the partial plan holder

The bottom line is the suites and the huge field level price increases are the problem

[BehindTimes]

Originally Posted by woodisgood

I think any argument regarding the Yankees setting high ticket prices has to take into consideration a festering ugly cancer that will never go away: SCALPERS. And with the internet having become such a life-changer in the past decade, their sickening growth will only continue.

How many scalping companies—and let's include those individuals who've learned they can make a buck scalping Yankees tix—bought ticket licenses in the past few years, knowing this day would come? New stadium = greater demand = profits for THEM. Even if they just had a minor plan, all they had to do with the relocation was say "sign me up for a full-season license!" and the Yankees, not having any way (that I can see) to "weed" them out, takes their cash and gives them what they want.

Just take a look at Stubhub alone! C'mon—how many of those people ALREADY SELLING TICKETS are actual fans?? Add in the other scalping companies online. Add in those waiting to unload on eBay and Craigslist. THESE are the people who must share some of the blame for our pain.

Yes, I understand there have been and always will be longtime Yankees fans selling tickets for games they can't go to. But their percentage compared to the scalpers is very very small.

That's what's painful to me—not that I'm getting "shut out" of a better location with my measly little plan. It's painful knowing a LOT of scalpers have taken up many licenses, and they don't give a rat's azz about the license holders who ACTUALLY want to GO to the GAMES. These are the cancers that have taken away better seats all down the line.

If someone can, I'd like to hear your opinion on how the Yankees could have weeded those scalpers out of this process. I can't think of how myself....

I've already brought this up in previous posts, but you have several inherent flaws in your post woodisgood.

You'll never get rid of scalpers. Supply vs demand, and as long as there are rich millionaire Yankee fans, and the Yankees have a product to sell, scalping will exist. The difference is that when a seat costs $40, they'll scalp the same seat for $200, whereas now that it costs $100, they won't keep it @ $200, but they'll charge $800. So what will the Yankees do next year? Raise the bleacher seats to a starting cost of $40, Grand Stand to $100, etc? I'd love to see that happen. Then the stadium trully would be empty.

As for StubHub, ok, sure, there are scalpers there. Let's take Opening Day. 24,000 Full Season Plans have been sold. About 6,000 tickets have been listed. You then have to take into consideration:

A) How many joke listings are there? Grandstand for $3000+? Main Outfield for $100k?
B) How many people can't genually go?
C) How many people are selling the prime games because they upgraded way out of their budget, and realize they'll need to sell games to make some of their money back? As much as some people love the Yankees, they might have other priorities which come before them. Some games obviously won't sell for over face value, so they'll need to make up money elsewhere.
D) How many people are selling their tickets, because if they do sell, they can live with downgrading from Field Infield to Bleachers?

I think, at worst, you're maybe looking about 10-15% of the seats being scalped. That sounds like a lot, but you have to understand, Yankee Stadium can hold over 50,000 people.

There are ways to get around scalpers. Use the Credit Card type ticket and don't allow for ticket transfers, etc.

Or, perhaps work with the scalpers. MLB did that with StubHub. Hey, you can be our official scalper, we just want 25% of your commission.

I'm sorry, but while scalpers may have been a reason for the Yankees to raise prices, the Yankees didn't think things through too thouroughly, and thought that all the scalped tickets would sell, just like they did last year. But last year was a special occassion. And also, while a person is willing to put $2000 to field box for a once in a lifetime experience, perhaps they can't justify the $10000 they'd have to put forward this year.

By raising the prices, the scalpers, aka, the people with the disposible cash, aren't the ones being kicked out of the stadium, the fans are.

[Number_15]

Originally Posted by woodisgood

I think any argument regarding the Yankees setting high ticket prices has to take into consideration a festering ugly cancer that will never go away: SCALPERS. And with the internet having become such a life-changer in the past decade, their sickening growth will only continue.
...
If someone can, I'd like to hear your opinion on how the Yankees could have weeded those scalpers out of this process. I can't think of how myself....

The Yankees (like a lot of other sports teams, concerts, etc.) are taking the approach to scalpers that if you can't beat them - JOIN THEM !!!. They've taken some of the scalpers' profits away by (1) hiking up ticket prices, and (2) naming StubHub as their "official" scalping company.

You can't really blame them too much for making these moves. If people are willing to pay big bucks for tickets, I'd rather see the Yankees collect the money than have the cash go to the scalpers. And we've had discussions before about the downsides of StubHub (e.g., big commission on top of the seller's price, electronic tickets only), but MLB is getting a piece of that action.

There are a lot of things that you can try to do to stop scalping, but ultimately, they'll find a way to beat the system. Any "quick fix" solutions (limits on number of tickets bought, making people stand in line, etc.) probably end up hurting real fans more than scalpers. The bottom line is: so long as people are willing to spend hundreds or thousands of bucks over face for an event ticket, the incentive for scalpers will be there.

[GordonGecko]

Originally Posted by BehindTimes

I've already brought this up in previous posts, but you have several inherent flaws in your post woodisgood.

You'll never get rid of scalpers. ...

Nothing wrong with scalpers, they have tickets and people want to buy them and are willing to pay a certain price. If people aren't willing, the scalper doesn't sell, so the end result is the scalper sells at the real market value of the ticket. IMO the only time scalpers are bad is when they get preferential access to tickets above everyone else, like bribing a ticket office worker. As long as everyone has a fair shot at buying from the primary market people should be free to resell at whatever the tickets are actually worth to people

I don't understand why tickets are any different than houses, jewelery, whatever. You buy at one price and then at some point someone wants to give you more. Why shouldn't you be allowed to buy if you like the price? Seriously I'd rather have a shot at buying a ticket at a certain price than not being able to get a ticket at any price

[ymike673]

Originally Posted by GordonGecko

Nothing wrong with scalpers, they have tickets and people want to buy them and are willing to pay a certain price. If people aren't willing, the scalper doesn't sell, so the end result is the scalper sells at the real market value of the ticket. IMO the only time scalpers are bad is when they get preferential access to tickets above everyone else, like bribing a ticket office worker. As long as everyone has a fair shot at buying from the primary market people should be free to resell at whatever the tickets are actually worth to people

I don't understand why tickets are any different than houses, jewelery, whatever. You buy at one price and then at some point someone wants to give you more. Why shouldn't you be allowed to buy if you like the price? Seriously I'd rather have a shot at buying a ticket at a certain price than not being to get a ticket at any price

Many times if you wait until after a game starts you can get tickets off a scalper for LESS than face value. And no service charges!

[aknnav]

Originally Posted by GordonGecko

Nothing wrong with scalpers, they have tickets and people want to buy them and are willing to pay a certain price. If people aren't willing, the scalper doesn't sell, so the end result is the scalper sells at the real market value of the ticket. IMO the only time scalpers are bad is when they get preferential access to tickets above everyone else, like bribing a ticket office worker. As long as everyone has a fair shot at buying from the primary market people should be free to resell at whatever the tickets are actually worth to people

I don't understand why tickets are any different than houses, jewelery, whatever. You buy at one price and then at some point someone wants to give you more. Why shouldn't you be allowed to buy if you like the price? Seriously I'd rather have a shot at buying a ticket at a certain price than not being able to get a ticket at any price

There is an upside to scalpers for non-scalpers who are selling tickets to games. You'll have an easier time (theoretically) selling your tickets because you have the ability to undercut them. Flooding the market with season ticket holders who are not interested in turning significant profits and you lower a scalpers expectations and in turn their markup. Non-scalpers who are willing to be reasonable on stubhub will sell their tickets far sooner than a scalper who is charging an obscene sum.

[keg411]

Originally Posted by GordonGecko

Can't do it. The Yankees added super premium sections at $850 / seat where most no one there paying $250 tops could afford or reasonably be forced to pay. So those people had to be moved to a cheaper section where space had to be made. In that other section, people had to be relocated too, so they got pushed out. To push out as little FS holders as possible, the odd man out is the partial plan holder

The bottom line is the suites and the huge field level price increases are the problem

The problem is that I'm pretty sure all that was set up prior to the economic collapse and a lot of major corporations that used to use these seats can no longer afford it. These were never seats that "Joe Schmoe" was able to get in somewhat recent years.

[waterdr]

Originally Posted by aknnav

There is an upside to scalpers for non-scalpers who are selling tickets to games. You'll have an easier time (theoretically) selling your tickets because you have the ability to undercut them. Flooding the market with season ticket holders who are not interested in turning significant profits and you lower a scalpers expectations and in turn their markup. Non-scalpers who are willing to be reasonable on stubhub will sell their tickets far sooner than a scalper who is charging an obscene sum.

I can see this happening this year with the flood of FS holders. I think about last year as the exception, $50 seats would sell for $150-200, because it was the final season. The year before the $50 seat would get $75 or break even, with fewer seats resold. I have to admit, last year OD, we bought a pair off Stubhub on Sat. for the Monday opening day for only $20 over face for Loge Club Box MVP. If you are patient there will be alot of ticket dumping at the last minute for games.

It still comes back to that last year was the last year, and although this is the first year, it will still be around next year and the year after so people will put off that extra special trip.

[Number_15]

Originally Posted by GordonGecko

Can't do it. The Yankees added super premium sections at $850 / seat where most no one there paying $250 tops could afford or reasonably be forced to pay.
. . . .
The bottom line is the suites and the huge field level price increases are the problem

Even though there are more affordable seats upstairs at the NYS, those top prices are pretty amazing. When I hear news reports about how the new Stadium is going to be a "palace" for the fans, it makes me cringe. I'll take a ballpark over a palace for watching a ballgame, any day.

With all of the upscaling that's been the trend for years now, something is being lost in the Yankee Stadium "experience". Expect more of that in the new park. Yankee fans have a rep for being intense (some of which is a little overhyped), but it's a few notches below what it used to be. I can't prove this, but I would say that the Stadium never, ever ROCKED the way it did back in the late 70's when the Red Sox came in for a series. It was deafening. The current (90's and 00's) rivalry doesn't even come close to that. And you NEVER saw the lower stands empty out in the late innings the way they do now, even in a tie ballgame. That is so totally warped - I can never get used to seeing that.

So here's my answer to how to put "real fans" back in the stands:
....All ticket buyers must pass a Baseball IQ Test.

Sample questions (these should weed out some of the tourists and wannabees):
- How many outs does each team get in an inning? (1/2, 3, or 27?)
- Can you name more than three current Yankee players? (Answers vary)
(If you can't answer these two - no admission for you. Come back after you pass Remedial Baseball 101)

Bonus question:
- When they do YMCA, Cotton Eyed Joe, or the Wave - do you take part?
(Answer NO to all three - you get an upgrade to Field Box Level).

[aknnav]

Originally Posted by Number_15

Even though there are more affordable seats upstairs at the NYS, those top prices are pretty amazing. When I hear news reports about how the new Stadium is going to be a "palace" for the fans, it makes me cringe. I'll take a ballpark over a palace for watching a ballgame, any day.

With all of the upscaling that's been the trend for years now, something is being lost in the Yankee Stadium "experience". Expect more of that in the new park. Yankee fans have a rep for being intense (some of which is a little overhyped), but it's a few notches below what it used to be. I can't prove this, but I would say that the Stadium never, ever ROCKED the way it did back in the late 70's when the Red Sox came in for a series. It was deafening. The current (90's and 00's) rivalry doesn't come even close to that. And you NEVER saw the lower stands empty out in the late innings the way they do now, even in a tie ballgame. That is so totally warped - I can never get used to seeing that.

So here's my answer to how to put "real fans" back in the stands:
....All ticket buyers must pass a Baseball IQ Test.

Sample questions (these should weed out some of the tourists and wannabees):
- How many outs are there in an inning? (1/2, 3, or 27?)
- Can you name more than three current Yankee players? (Answers vary)
(If you can't answer these two - no admission for you. Come back after you pass Remedial Baseball 101)

Bonus question:
- When they do YMCA, Cotton Eyed Joe, or the Wave - do you take part?
(Answer NO to all three - you get an upgrade to Field Box Level).

Huh?

[BehindTimes]

Originally Posted by Number_15

Even though there are more affordable seats upstairs at the NYS, those top prices are pretty amazing. When I hear news reports about how the new Stadium is going to be a "palace" for the fans, it makes me cringe. I'll take a ballpark over a palace for watching a ballgame, any day.

With all of the upscaling that's been the trend for years now, something is being lost in the Yankee Stadium "experience". Expect more of that in the new park. Yankee fans have a rep for being intense (some of which is a little overhyped), but it's a few notches below what it used to be. I can't prove this, but I would say that the Stadium never, ever ROCKED the way it did back in the late 70's when the Red Sox came in for a series. It was deafening. The current (90's and 00's) rivalry doesn't come even close to that. And you NEVER saw the lower stands empty out in the late innings the way they do now, even in a tie ballgame. That is so totally warped - I can never get used to seeing that.

So here's my answer to how to put "real fans" back in the stands:
....All ticket buyers must pass a Baseball IQ Test.

Sample questions (these should weed out some of the tourists and wannabees):
- How many outs are there in an inning? (1/2, 3, or 27?)
- Can you name more than three current Yankee players? (Answers vary)
(If you can't answer these two - no admission for you. Come back after you pass Remedial Baseball 101)

Bonus question:
- When they do YMCA, Cotton Eyed Joe, or the Wave - do you take part?
(Answer NO to all three - you get an upgrade to Field Box Level).

Well, I'd suggest you edit your post for the first question, as you don't have the right answer in parenthesis