Oops: Ticketmaster Mixup Sells Out Obama Inaugural Ball - East Idaho News
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Oops: Ticketmaster Mixup Sells Out Obama Inaugural Ball

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010713 2008InauguralBall?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1357601872020Behind the scenes at the 2009 Inaugural Ball. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) — An inadvertent early sale of tickets to events surrounding President Obama’s second inauguration means some would-be attendees won’t get their chance to see the occasion.

Public sales for the inaugural ball at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and the day’s parade were scheduled to be released Monday morning on Ticketmaster. But in an email to waiting buyers released by the vendor Monday, Ticketmaster admitted that sales inadvertently went up Sunday, a day early.

The mix-up was spurred when an email alert system for hopeful buyers misfired, directing recipients to Ticketmaster’s sales site to complete their purchase.

A representative for Ticketmaster said the company was contractually bound not to discuss specifics of sales by its client, the President’s Inaugural Committee. In a written statement the company said regardless of the timing error, tickets were always sold “on a first come first serve basis.”

“While an e-mail indicating that Inaugural event tickets were available was sent earlier than planned, tickets to Inaugural events were sold per usual Ticketmaster process on a first come first serve basis. Everyone who purchased tickets for the Inaugural Ball and the Inaugural parade will receive their tickets,” it reads.

“We understand the disappointment people feel if they were unable to obtain tickets, but like all other popular events, demand was much greater than supply,” the statement reads. “Ticketmaster and PIC will continue to work closely to ensure everyone receives the latest ticketing information.”

The end result was a massive rush on the tickets, completely selling out at least one event — the inaugural ball — before its intended sale time.

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