Ticketmaster is one of the largest ticket sales and distribution companies, serving clients across live entertainment and sporting events. When purchasing tickets on Ticketmaster, you may have noticed that you can’t leave just one single seat open – you either have to purchase all seats in a row or leave a gap of at least two seats between purchases.
Ticketmaster’s Seating Policies
There are a few reasons behind Ticketmaster’s policies around leaving single seats:
- To prevent stranded single seats – By not allowing customers to purchase just one seat in a row, it reduces the likelihood of there being a single stranded seat left that can’t be sold. This makes seating allocation and sales easier to manage.
- Safety and security – Leaving single empty seats could potentially be a safety hazard in the event of an emergency or security threat. It’s safer to keep groups together without solitary empty seats between them.
- Customer experience – Fans generally don’t want to sit next to an empty seat with strangers on either side. Leaving single seats unsold provides a better experience for ticket buyers.
Basically, Ticketmaster wants to optimize sales, safety and customer satisfaction by ensuring that seats are sold in contiguous blocks without solitary empty seats between groups.
Are There Any Exceptions?
In some cases, there may be exceptions to the single seat policy:
- For accessible seating – Wheelchair accessible and companion seats may be available as single seats due to limited availability.
- If tickets sell out – Once an event starts selling out, single scattered seats may start becoming available for purchase.
- Suite or VIP seating – Luxury box or other premium seat tickets are sometimes available as single seats.
- Group sales – Some group ticket blocks may have single scattered seats, depending on the size of the group.
However, for most standard seating, Ticketmaster will enforce the two seat gap rule to optimize sales and customer experience.
Purchasing Odd Numbered Group Tickets
If you’re purchasing tickets for a group with an odd number of people, here are some tips on Ticketmaster:
- Purchase the whole row – Buying the full row will ensure your group can sit together, even if there are single empty seats.
- Separate into smaller groups – Break your group into smaller sets of pairs and leave a two seat gap between groups.
- Add a single ticket – Purchase an extra single ticket in a different section so your main group can sit together.
- Wait for single seats – Keep checking back as sometimes single seats will open up closer to the event date.
Planning ahead as much as possible will give you the best chance at getting a block of seats together for odd sized groups.
Why are Single Seats Problematic?
There are a few specific issues that arise from allowing single scattered empty seats:
- Difficult to sell – A single seat on its own has a much lower chance of selling than a pair or block of seats. Stranded singles reduce overall sales.
- Security risks – Lone empty seats make security monitoring more difficult compared to fully occupied blocks.
- Disruptive fans – Crazed fans or hecklers could purchase a single seat with the intent of disrupting surrounding ticket holders.
- Overselling issues – Holding back singles can help prevent overselling. Otherwise if singles sell later, it could result in not having enough seats.
While fan experience is a big factor, logistics and safety are the main considerations for Ticketmaster’s single seat policy.
How are Single Seats Handled on Other Ticketing Platforms?
Ticketmaster is not the only ticketing platform with rules against single seats. Many others have similar policies:
- AXS – Requires at least a two seat gap like Ticketmaster.
- VividSeats – Singles allowed but encourages pairing seats for better experience.
- StubHub – Restricts single seats, especially for high demand events.
- SeatGeek – Singles sometimes available but not guaranteed.
The major ticketing platforms recognize the logistical challenges and fan experience factors of allowing single scattered seats. Platforms like VividSeats with resale markets have more flexibility than primary ticket sellers.
Should Single Seat Rules Be Changed?
There are reasonable arguments on both sides of whether the single seat policies should be amended:
- For keeping rules – Current policy optimized sales, security, overselling. Customer experience also benefits.
- Against rules – Could open up more affordability and flexibility. Some fans may prefer having a gap next to them.
One potential compromise would be to release single seats much closer to event date if they remain unsold. This would allow more flexibility once primary sales are mostly completed.
In general, the single seat policy seems unlikely to change significantly. The logistics for venues and platforms are simplified by keeping group seating blocks intact without singles breaking them up haphazardly.
Tips for Finding Single Seats
If you are set on getting just one single ticket, here are some tips:
- Check resale sites closer to event date as they are less restrictive.
- Look for suite, VIP or accessible seating sections.
- Set up alerts in case singles open up due to cancellations.
- Call box office directly as they sometimes hold back singles.
- Try for less popular events where demand is lower.
With high demand hot events, singles will be extremely hard to come by. But for lower demand events, you may get lucky finding a stray single seat even on Ticketmaster.
Contacting Ticketmaster About Singles
If you have an issue with single seat restrictions, here are tips on contacting Ticketmaster customer service:
- Live chat or phone for quick response during business hours.
- Email for non-urgent inquiries and documentation.
- Social media (Twitter/Facebook) to publicly share issues.
- Note the event and seat details when describing your issue.
- Ask about exceptions or workarounds they can offer.
Keep in mind that singles are restricted due to policy, not system errors, so agents have limited flexibility. But customer service can look for other seat options or explain rationale behind the rules.
Checking Other Sources for Singles
Don’t limit yourself to just Ticketmaster when looking for that golden single seat. Some other places to check include:
- Official venue box office site – Sometimes hold back singles.
- Band or artist fan clubs – May have ticket allotments.
- Radio station promotions – Contests may award single seats.
- Craigslist, Facebook – Fans reselling extras may have singles.
- At the venue – Day of show singles sometimes appear.
Singles will be extremely limited, but persistence across multiple sources gives you the best chance at securing that solo seat you want!
Conclusion
Ticketmaster and other major ticketing platforms restrict single seat selection to optimize sales, safety and customer experience. While fans occasionally desire solo seats, the logistical and security factors generally outweigh those wishes for high demand events. Customers have best luck securing single seats for low demand events, through special allotments, or via resale closer to event dates. With patience and persistence, you may eventually locate the exclusive single seat you crave!