What That Ticketmaster Class Action Settlement Really Gets You

Maybe you, like me, bought some tickets from Ticketmaster between 1999 and 2013. Maybe you, like me, got an email late last month about a class-action lawsuit against Ticketmaster. Something-something-legalese about UPS delivery fees. Maybe you, like me, promptly put it out of mind.

But then on Tuesday morning, maybe you, like me, started hearing some extravagant claims from friends. About tickets—free tickets. Members of the Schlesinger v. Ticketmaster class action were owed scores of tickets each. One particularly happy-go-lucky music-loving friend claimed to be owed 34 tickets—17 pairs to be used by 2020.

As the saying goes: Anything too good to be true about Ticketmaster probably is. Unfortunately, many would-be free-concert-going claimants will find that the tickets won’t get them much. The vouchers are only good for Live Nation venues, and only for specific shows and locations. At this time, just 36 venues are accepting ticket vouchers for shows through the rest of the summer and well into fall, putting redemption out of reach, geographically, for many eligible claimants.

Some fans have special reason to celebrate, however. Devotees of the stylings of Slipknot have ample opportunity to catch them on their summer tour (while supplies last). In fact, a class-action member who earned the maximum-available refund (17 pairs of tickets, like my friend) could potentially follow them from coast to coast—from the Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater in Virginia Beach, Virginia, to the Sleep Train Amphitheatre in Chula Vista, California, with stops in between.  

Holy shit: Did you know that Slipknot won a Grammy? Best Metal Performance, 2006, for “Before I Forget,” off of Vol. 3. And Slipknot has been nominated for a Grammy Award 10 times? Not only is Slipknot still a band in 2016, it was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2016—that’s this year! A Ticketmaster class-action member could see Grammy Award–winning band Slipknot play at 16 different venues this summer.

Beyond fans of Slipknot, the pickings are slim for Ticketmaster claimants. Ticketmaster/Live Nation restricted eligible venues to those in places such as Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, and Alpharetta, Georgia, far from the respective populations of Pittsburgh and Atlanta. It’s a bit like what Slipknot sings on “Wait and Bleed,” their first-ever Grammy Award–nominated song: “I wander out where you can't see/ Inside my shell I wait and bleed.” You know, like being so close to something you desire (free tickets), but so far from ever finding it (a Live Nation venue)?

The other big winners in the Ticketmaster class-action are claimants who live in Indianapolis, where Bob Dylan is playing. Dylan is another Grammy Award–winning artist, like Slipknot. While Indianapolis is hardly the only Live Nation stop on Dylan’s summer-long tour, that’s the single Dylan show that Ticketmaster has deemed eligible for the class-action voucher so far. Other winners include Baby Boomer dads who still love Steely Dan and Gen X dads who still love Blink 182 (minus UFO-hunter Tom DeLonge)—both bands that are playing all the best venues that Live Nation has to offer.

Here’s a list of every venue where Ticketmaster has made shows available so far. Note: The vouchers are good for concerts through 2020 at least, so more venues may appear with shows announced for later than this fall. (Eligible Slipknot appearances are indicated in bold.)

Isleta Amphitheater
Albuquerque, New Mexico

Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park
Alpharetta, Georgia

Lakewood Amphitheatre
Atlanta, Georgia

Chastain Park Amphitheatre
Atlanta, Georgia

White River Amphitheatre
Auburn, Washington

Jiffy Lube Live
Bristow, Virginia

First Niagara Pavilion
Burgettstown, Pennsylvania

BB&T Pavilion (Formerly Susquehanna)
Camden, New Jersey

Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre
Charlotte, North Carolina

PNC Music Pavilion
Charlotte, North Carolina

FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
Chicago, Illinois

Sleep Train Amphitheatre in Chula Vista
Chula Vista, California

Concord Pavilion
Concord, California

Blossom Music Center
Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio

Gexa Energy Pavilion
Dallas, Texas

Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
Darien Center, New York

Alpine Valley Music Theatre
Elkhorn, Wisconsin

PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, New Jersey

Farm Bureau Insurance Lawn at White River State Park
Indianapolis, Indiana

Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre (formerly Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre)
Irvine, California

Xfinity Center
Mansfield, Massachusetts

Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Maryland Heights, Missouri

Bayfront Park Amphitheater
Miami, Florida

Shoreline Amphitheatre
Mountain View, California

Ascend Amphitheater
Nashville, Tennessee

Klipsch Music Center
Noblesville, Indiana

Ak-Chin Pavilion
Phoenix, Arizona

Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
Raleigh, North Carolina

San Manuel Amphitheater formerly Glen Helen Pavilion
San Bernardino, California

Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Saratoga Springs, New York

The Pavilion at Montage Mountain
Scranton, Pennsylvania

MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre at the FL State Fairgrounds
Tampa, Florida

Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Tinley Park, Illinois

Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
Virginia Beach, Virginia

Perfect Vodka Amphitheatre at the S. Florida Fairgrounds
West Palm Beach, Florida

Toyota Amphitheatre
Wheatland, California