INDIVIDUAL GAME TICKETS TO GO ON SALE SEPT. 28

[BoBoBREWSKI]

www.trailblazers.com

INDIVIDUAL GAME TICKETS TO GO ON SALE SEPT. 28

Team to use ‘variable pricing’ model to help establish ticket prices

PORTLAND, Ore. – Tickets for each of the Portland Trail Blazers’ 41 regular season games will go on sale Monday, September 28, at noon, the team announced today.

Tickets will be available at the Rose Quarter box office, TicketsWest outlets, trailblazers.com or by calling 503-797-9600. Fewer than 1,000 tickets are expected to be available for many games during Monday’s initial on-sale, with prices starting as low as $9.

“We can’t wait to get the season started and build upon the excitement of last season,” Trail Blazers Chief Marketing Officer Sarah Mensah said. “Our fans have played an instrumental role in our success by selling out the building every night, providing our team with a true home-court advantage and leading the Rip City Uprise back to the NBA Playoffs.”

Additional ticket availability

Additional tickets for each game, such as those held for inclusion in quarter-season ticket packages and group sales inventory, will once again be available approximately three weeks before game day.

Each Monday at noon, a 48-hour pre-sale opportunity will be offered via e-mail to members of the ‘Next In Line’ program for aspiring season ticket holders. On Wednesdays at noon, remaining tickets will be released for sale to the general public.

Variable pricing

For the first time, the Trail Blazers will adopt a ‘variable pricing’ model that enables the ticket price for each game to be adjusted throughout the sales cycle in accordance with demand factors like opponent, day of week, approaching milestones, ticket availability, etc.

“For several games, we anticipate our tickets being an even greater value to fans than they were last year,” Mensah said. “For the marquee games, we anticipate prices closer in alignment with market demand.”

Even with variable pricing in place, the team will continue to make $9 tickets available to all 41 games during the initial on-sale.

2009-10 season gets underway October 27

The on-sale date coincides with the team’s annual Media Day, as the players return to officially begin training camp the following day. The Trail Blazers open the season in Portland on Tuesday, October 27, vs. the Houston Rockets, looking to build upon last year’s 54-win season during which they earned a share of the Northwest Division title.

The team acquired guard Andre Miller on July 24, augmenting a nucleus led by Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Oden. The Trail Blazers will also welcome back Martell Webster, who missed virtually the entire 2008-09 season because of injury.

A limited number of season tickets and quarter-season packages still remain for 2009-10. For information on those, or on group ticket opportunities for parties of 10 or more, fans can call 503-797-9600.

ABOUT NEXT IN LINE

The Trail Blazers launched ‘Next in Line’ to provide fans with a priority number for access to season tickets in their desired location as they become available. In addition to a wait list priority number, each subscriber will also receive pre-sale opportunities for single-game tickets, a pair of tickets to a game this season, a team yearbook, merchandise discounts and four tickets to the Nike Hoop Summit for $199.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

I like the idea of variable pricing because it makes it harder for the scalpers.

 

[cdub503]

What's that mean variable pricing? I myself will try to get laker and celtics tickets and maybe cavs.

 

[mobes23]

Variable pricing means you pay more for prime games. Usually prime games will mean either the opponent is a good one (most often), but it might also be a weekend game, home opener, etc.

 

[julius]

As long as they start selling courtside tickets to..wait, who is the worst team in the league? games next year for like 15 bucks, I don't care what they do otherwise.

 

[BrianFromWA]

I don't think this makes it really that much harder on the scalpers. Most of them buy season tickets, and then scalp them at the door. Season ticket prices were constant throughout the year (though my per-game price went up about 40%). I imagine that, if I pay 40 per game, and I can't make the Cavs game, I'll be able to get a larger price than normal since the team's already increasing prices. It seems that someone would feel better paying 100 for a ticket that says $100 on it, than paying $100 for a ticket in the same section that says 40 on it.

I've never really studied the psychology of scalping, though. When I can't go to a game (about 25 per year or so), I just put them up on the Blazers' site for auction. Sometimes I cover my cost--sometimes I don't. I don't see how "variable pricing" makes it worse.