2010 DCI Tickets: WHEEEEEEEE!

[garfield]

Has this been verified? I know that the super-premium seats are only included with the Platinum package, but in the past you could always pay the difference between the premium and super-premium seats if you were a member at a lower level.

I can't imagine that DCI will have so many platinum friends as to fill all those sections.

For what it's worth, a Platinum membership includes 6 tix and is $2500. It comes out to $418 per ticket, and you have an option to buy 4 more at $300 which brings the average down to $370. On a per ticket basis, the increase isn't particularly onerous, especially considering the other benefits. But when you multiply by 4-5 for a family, I can see where they might be pricing themselves out of that market.

According to the official '09 DCI yearbook there are 105 platinum members (not including corporate members) I don't know how many seats are in the black section but this is a pretty good sized group if they all go. And, by the way, it represents more than $270,000 in membership fees, not including extra tickets bought. If all platinum members bought their max of 10 tickets that'd be...well, you do the math on seats needed for platinum Friends.

[perc2100]

I was not hinting at free tickets. But it would be nice to be able to sit somewhere better than the 10 yard line to see your own kid whose tour fee runs into the thousands. Block out one section of 100 or so seats around the 35 or 40 yardline so parents of each corps could sit there when their kids perform. They then leave and make room for the next corps' parents. It's gotten to the point that even parents who volunteer with corps for an entire summer have no seating available between the goal lines. Sad, very sad.

Don't most corps do this? Or is seating for those corps who do a 'block' section that bad?

[Phillygwm]

The one shame in it I see is that the immediate families of the performers do not get any type of preferential seating like the families of the NBA, NFL, MLB, NASCAR, etc. performers. It's bad enough that some parents of performers have to sit in the end zones. But it's really sad when some parents cannot even afford to get in the stadium to see their kids perform. I know life's not fair, but that is still sad to me.

I suppose one could choose to sponsor parents and other family members with super-premium Finals tickets in the same way many sponsor marching members.

But please be assured that the stadium will NOT be sold out, this year or next. If the parents can't sit in their corps' block, there will be plenty of seats in the lower and upper deck, as well as outside the 30's that will be more affordable. There are worse injustices in life than having to sit in those sections. A previous post estimated $270K of revenue for Platinum members alone. On the 2007 Form 990, "Direct Public Support" amounted to $345K and that will probably be higher in 2009. This is out of a budget of almost $11M (and an operating deficit of $284K.)

If I'm DCI, in this economic environment and given a prior year operating deficit (I don't know about 2008's numbers) I'd be looking to increase donations any way I could.

[Abbevillekid26]

I can PROMISE one thing... I will NEVER, EVER buy finals tickets from DCI again. Not as long as I live. Not after getting screwed last year. They moved to an inferior stadium (at least as far as comfort, ammenities, and distance are concerned) and didn't offer ANYTHING to the people who had already purchased Fab5 tickets. Excuse me? I paid $600 for 2 tickets, and this is how I get treated. BS.

I'll buy the tickets from someone privately if I want to go again. But never again from DCI. They just simply can't be bothered with making fans happy.

Great plan it's not like the other person bought them from DCI or anything.

Sometimes I wonder how people on this board expect themselves to be taken seriously.

[Peel Paint]

Has this [that you have to join at the $2500 Platinum level to get Super Premium seats] been verified? I know that the super-premium seats are only included with the Platinum package, but in the past you could always pay the difference between the premium and super-premium seats if you were a member at a lower level.

You're right, if tickets remain in the black box after Diamond and Platinum level members get theirs.

From the bottom of the page http://www.dci.org/about/friends/membership.cfm

"Platinum Members may select Super Premium or Premium seats but are guaranteed six (6) Super Premium seats at no extra charge for world championships. All other levels are subject to availability at the time of seating. Price for complimentary Super Premium seats at the Gold and Silver levels is the difference between Super Premium and Premium package prices."

That means that Platinum and Diamond level members are guaranteed black box tickets. (And note that Diamond donors giving $5000 or more can "customize" their package, which means negotiate for more tickets. For $5000, they probably get 12 Super Premium Fantastic 5 seats, and for each $400-500 they donate above $5000, they might get one additional ticket package. You're talking a few big deal corporate sponsors here, the ones who get their names on the midfield featured banners.)

Whatever's left in the black box can go to Silver (each member gets 3 Fantastic 5 Premium packages and can purchase at face value up to 3 more), then Gold members (each member gets 1 F5 Premium package and can purchase one more at face value), by level of membership and then level of seniority in the program, if the supply holds out and if they're willing to pay about $80 per ticket to upgrade Premium to Super Premium. (And no, for those who are wondering, you can't just pay for $125 finals tickets for your additional tickets. You have to pay for Fantastic 5 packages, and those cost $219 each for Premium or $299 each for Super Premium.)

It's possible that Friends would use up all the black box tickets. It's also possible there would be some left over, that could then be sold by DCI or given to corps.

Edited August 5, 2009 by Peel Paint