Linking Tickets - where is the answer?

[STAR Voice]

From what I can tell after a week away on holiday, the linking system as implemented is different from the linking system we were expecting.

As far as I'm concerned (and a lot of this is personal opinion, rather than STAR policy) there is nothing wrong in principle with linking tickets so as to discourage plastics/glory hunters (call them what you like).

However, what should be included, and what seems to be lacking, are the two below facilities :

- you can link a Platinum game with your choice of Silver game. (i.e If you buy a Man Utd ticket then you have to buy from a choice of Silver games, not just one specified one). This is how we understood the linking would work, except for on-line sales where there are technology issues.

- the link only works one-way. i.e you can buy a Silver ticket without having to buy a Platinum ticket, so that people can buy Charlton tickets without buying Man Utd tickets. Without this, it's pointless setting the points requirement lower for Charlton since only if the Man Utd game is sold out (unlikely) will people with fewer points be able to buy Charlton tickets. This means that selling the two separate games as two products is pointless - all that is actually being sold is a single "two-game package!"

So I consider it vital that people are able to purchase Charlton tickets without making them buy Man Utd tickets, and I'm amazed if things have been set up with a two-way link rather than just a one-way link.

As to getting a response yet, many people have been away and only got back this week so no response yet - but if there isn't one this matter will definitely be discussed in depth at the next Senior Management meting on Wednesday next week.

[STAR Liaison]

That suggests STAR have been provided with a less than constructive response - I'd be interested to know what it was!

It was a holding response from someone without the authority to do anything to change the system, which TBH was all I expected knowing the holiday absentees and hence I was not in a hurry to add to my earlier response.

[PieEater]

As far as I'm concerned (and a lot of this is personal opinion, rather than STAR policy) there is nothing wrong in principle with linking tickets so as to discourage plastics/glory hunters (call them what you like).

So what is the point of Royalty point thresholds to release tickets? How can you label someone who has enough points to buy at the release date a glory hunter, and shouldn't STAR have the interests of ALL fans at heart?

Also how can people with fewer points build them up by attending the Charlton game as there will be no tickets available? They will now have even less chance of getting a ticket for the next platinum game. RFC obviously dont care about these people but STAR should (unless of course you need to have passed a loyalty qualification threshold before STAR take any interest)

This approach totally skews the royalty point scale for Platinum/Silver games, and although it may be good for the clubs coffers in the short term, in the longer term they are pissing off a lot of people.

[londinium]

As far as I'm concerned (and a lot of this is personal opinion, rather than STAR policy) there is nothing wrong in principle with linking tickets so as to discourage plastics/glory hunters (call them what you like).

So what is the point of Royalty point thresholds to release tickets? How can you label someone who has enough points to buy at the release date a glory hunter, and shouldn't STAR have the interests of ALL fans at heart?

Also how can people with fewer points build them up by attending the Charlton game as there will be no tickets available? They will now have even less chance of getting a ticket for the next platinum game. RFC obviously dont care about these people but STAR should (unless of course you need to have passed a loyalty qualification threshold before STAR take any interest)

This approach totally skews the royalty point scale for Platinum/Silver games, and although it may be good for the clubs coffers in the short term, in the longer term they are pissing off a lot of people.

Totally agree with you PieEater.. I cant see why Star havent come back with a response to this yet. As you say, it is a totally unfair system and makes a complete mockery of the Loyalty points system and only serves to allow the people with lesser points but more money to get, not only tickets to the higher profile games but stop people who genuinely want to go to the lesser games for whatever reason getting tickets at all.

Unfortunately my children knew they wouldnt be going to see the likes of Man United and Chelsea as they dont have enough points and where more than happy to go to the likes of Bolton and Charlton, but now they are unable to do that because of this ridiculous system.

[STAR Voice]

It's very easy to reinforce your argument with selective quoting, isn't it?

After the single paragraph you quote, you mysteriously omit the pre-conditions which I say have to be applied if tickets are "linked". As you won't, I'll quote it below :

As far as I'm concerned (and a lot of this is personal opinion, rather than STAR policy) there is nothing wrong in principle with linking tickets so as to discourage plastics/glory hunters (call them what you like).

However, what should be included, and what seems to be lacking, are the two below facilities :

- you can link a Platinum game with your choice of Silver game. (i.e If you buy a Man Utd ticket then you have to buy from a choice of Silver games, not just one specified one). This is how we understood the linking would work, except for on-line sales where there are technology issues.

- the link only works one-way. i.e you can buy a Silver ticket without having to buy a Platinum ticket, so that people can buy Charlton tickets without buying Man Utd tickets. Without this, it's pointless setting the points requirement lower for Charlton since only if the Man Utd game is sold out (unlikely) will people with fewer points be able to buy Charlton tickets. This means that selling the two separate games as two products is pointless - all that is actually being sold is a single "two-game package!"

So I consider it vital that people are able to purchase Charlton tickets without making them buy Man Utd tickets, and I'm amazed if things have been set up with a two-way link rather than just a one-way link.

As such, I agree that the way the linking was implemented was wrong - and it was different to what STAR had been led to believe would be applied.

See what a difference quoting the whole message makes?

[STAR Liaison]

Please let me know where the club have said it will be possible to buy a Charlton ticket without also buying a Man United one.


Does STAR's current take on the issue correspond to this interpretation or the actually implemented one?

Having just come from the senior management meeting I have been assured that even (when!) the Man Utd game sells out there will still be tickets available for the Charlton game. This is because various hospitality/club sponsor/premiership sponsors get tickets for a certain number of games in the season and they (surprisingly?) opt for those games that are designated platinum games and so there will be more tickets available for the silver games. In fact the Charlton tickets will be on sale next week, Tuesday I think from memory.

The interpretation did change from the original proposal put to us but we have been given the reason and accept that it is the best in the circumstances. So many people have concerns about the software that it is very understandable that given the number of platinum games in a short time in the next few weeks, that they only wanted to release one silver game at a time. Maybe not the best for all fans but given the fixture list understandable.

[PieEater]

See what a difference quoting the whole message makes?

To be honest no. The rest of the quote supports your position of linking games on preconditions. My comments relate to how the linking is a bad idea, to the detriment of fans, contary to the current priority system of ticket sales, and how it skews the points system.

I could understand the club deciding to take this sort of action if they had some basis for it i,e a low attendance for Charlton. As we have sold out every game I cannot see any justification for linking games now other than for them to maximise their revenue early at the inconvenience of fans..

To re-iterate, pls explain how linking games is to the benefit of the fans you claim to represent, how it is in line with the current points system, and what exactly is the loyalty threshold for STAR to take an interest.