Not a disastrous summer after all

LIVE SUMMER HEATS UP: Don’t believe everything you read when it comes to this summer’s live concert season. Insiders insist the scattered cancellations are no more than usual, an assertion backed by noted research firm Thomas Weisel Partners, which continues to be bullish on Live Nation, going so far as to say the company’s No Service-Fee Wednesdays have actually increased ancillary revenues per ticket buyer, a claim backed up by sources at the concert promoter. Recent blog reports of up to 200 show cancellations this summer are also being dismissed as “absurd,” a product of some heavy spinning by rival promoters. Comparing concert promoters to theatre exhibitors—who hope the hits will pay for the misses—Weisel concludes: “The cancellation rate has been much less dramatic than press reports would lead one to believe." In addition, the Jay-Z/Eminem show Sept. 13 at Yankee Stadium sold out after tickets went on sale yesterday, with a second date, Sept. 14, added. (6/25a)