Dwell Nation Posts 2022 Second Quarter Earnings, Headed for Report 12 months

Live Nation posted stable leads to its second quarter earnings report, with a 40% improve in income over the identical interval in 2019 to $4.4 billion, an 86% improve in working revenue to $319 million, and a 50% improve in adjusted working revenue $480 million.

Maybe most importantly, “We have now bought over 100 million tickets for our live shows this 12 months — greater than we bought for all the 12 months in 2019,” CEO Michael Rapino stated in a press release, including that the corporate is on monitor for a document 12 months.

Dwell Nation additionally posted what it stated is its highest quarterly attendance ever, with greater than 33 million followers throughout 12,500 occasions — up 20% over the identical quarter in 2019.

Rapino stated, “With many of the world totally re-opened, it’s clear that live shows stay a excessive precedence for followers. Shoppers are looking for out and spending extra on experiences, and the rising demand we’re seeing for stay music and occasions is driving our enterprise to document ranges, far outpacing any macro points or value will increase.”

Nevertheless, whereas many blockbuster excursions, equivalent to Harry Types and Olivia Rodrigo, are thriving, the excessive variety of artists on the highway, mixed with recession fears and lingering apprehension about mass gatherings as Covid variants proceed, has induced others to carry out under expectations. Additionally, final week’s controversy over the excessive costs of many tickets for Bruce Springsteen’s 2023 tour weren’t a public relations boon for the corporate, which owns Ticketmaster, though it have to be famous that this system couldn’t have been instituted with out the approval of the artist and the live shows’ promoters (Springsteen’s tour has a number of promoters).

Excessive costs had been famous within the earnings report, which reads partly, “Whilst present depend and attendance grew, followers demonstrated their willingness to pay extra for the most effective seats, with the typical value of a ticket for our live shows this 12 months up 10% globally, relative to 2019, which stays largely in step with the U.S. inflation degree over the interval.” Though it notes, “On the identical time, our common entry value for live shows remained reasonably priced at $33, up solely 5% from 2019,” it does mirror the dynamic pricing (i.e. rising with demand) of the “Platinum” tickets that induced the Springsteen controversy. “With market-based pricing being extensively adopted by most excursions, we count on to shift over $500 million from the secondary market to artists this 12 months, persevering with to help those that created the live performance and making certain they’re benefiting from it.”

On that observe, it continues that transacted fee-bearing ticket quantity was up 48% to 77 million tickets, and gross transaction worth was up 76% to $7.3 billion, each relative to Q2 2019 — the corporate’s highest fee-bearing quarter ever, with 75% of the expansion got here from live shows.

Together with the amount improve, transacted ticket pricing globally was up roughly 15% for the primary half of the 12 months relative to 2019, as each live shows and sporting occasions noticed comparable low double-digit value will increase throughout this era. “Even with robust major ticketing gross sales and elevated pricing, demand for stay occasions on our secondary ticketing market stays excessive, and because of this, our GTV greater than doubled for the quarter relative to Q2 2019.”

The report notes that of the over 6 million further followers this quarter, 5 million of the expansion got here from worldwide markets, pushed by the addition of OCESA and the re-opening of most world markets, with notably robust fan demand via Europe and Latin America.

It additionally states that the corporate has launched practically 30 new venues throughout the globe. “We’re seeing the good thing about working extra venues, because the variety of followers who attended exhibits in our owned or operated venues throughout the quarter was up 13% to over 14 million followers, and we count on that determine to succeed in over 50 million followers for the total 12 months.”

The report says that followers are spending extra on-site, with common income per fan up over 20% at our amphitheaters, festivals and theaters and golf equipment relative to this time in 2019 whereas the typical income per fan at our amphitheaters this 12 months is $38.50, up 30% relative so far in 2019.

Sponsorship noticed 74% development in income relative to Q2 2019, with pageant sponsorship greater than doubling from 2019, led by 9 new festivals in its Mexico and Latin American companies that accounted for roughly half this improve.

“As we put together for 2023, in all places globally is open for live shows, and we’re actively routing into all markets with the biggest artist pipeline we’ve got ever seen at this level within the 12 months,” Rapino’s assertion concludes. “For the 2023 excursions we’ve got placed on sale to this point, all indicators proceed pointing to robust fan demand.”