How many brands exist for decades despite their near universal opprobrium? And how many of these not only maintain their lonely, despised existence, but actually thrive and prosper despite their loathsome image and sordid reputation? And can such a brand ever be reclaimed and rehabilitated in the public’s eye, or are they forever tainted by their history of egregious behavior?

Ask Ticketmaster in a few years.

This afternoon, I sat through a presentation by serial entrepreneur Sam Gerace, the CEO of Veritix, who is directing the development and growth of a company that has the potential to displace Ticketmaster with the introduction of virtual, Flash Tickets that provide distinct benefits to the ticket holder, the venue, and the artists.

Ticketmaster Redefines Service
Ticketmaster has imposed its ruthless and rapacious will on the ticket buying public, performing artists and venue owners through sheer monopolistic force for years. After gobbling up all of its competitors in the ticketing industry, Ticketmaster extracted usurious fees for  laughable “services,” including a “convenience charge,” “building fee,” and even a $2.50 charge to print your own ticket at home. Thanks, Ticketmaster!

I have actually purchased tickets and discovered that the assorted Ticketmaster fees exceeded the cost of the tickets themselves. So, just for the sake of clarity and complete transparency let me make clear: I hate Ticketmaster.

And that’s why I hope that Veritix is able to maintain its tenuous perch in the ticketing industry and eventually displace Ticketmaster entirely.

A New Ticketing Model
While Ticketmaster exists seemingly only to impose its draconian and punitive vision of ticketing services on a defenseless public, Veritix has created an entirely different ticketing model that provides immediate and distinct benefits to the ticket buyer, the venue owner, and the performing artist.

Veritix doesn’t sell a physical ticket. They sell a Flash Ticket that enables the buyer to show up at the venue, show some form of ID and gain entrance to the event. You don’t buy a ticket, you buy access to the event.

Benefits of Flash Tickets
Can’t make the show? Go online and add your virtual tickets to an online ticket marketplace that facilitates the resale of unwanted or unusable Flash Tickets. Bad for scalpers of physical tickets, but great for virtually every ticket buyer.

The venue owner or artist can cap the resale prices, eliminating the abilities of legitimate resellers like StubHub, and street-corner scalpers from extorting enormous sums for tickets to popular events.

Since Veritix charges for their technology platform and does not charge fees for ticket processing, they have no incentive to escalate processing and handling fees. Which scares the hell out of Ticketmaster.

They’re Gonna Make You An Offer You Can’t Refuse
Now I fully expect Ticketmaster to employ a legion of unsavory tactics to impede Veritix. I wouldn’t be surprised if they increase their political contributions substantially to persuade politicians at every level to impose legislative hurdles and try to muscle their current contract holders to extend their agreements or face dire short-term consequences. The only thing missing will be baseball bats and bodies on meathooks.

From a branding perspective, I don’t believe that Ticketmaster can rehabilitate their tarnished brand. What they fail to realize is that the user experience defines their brand. It’s out of their control. Sure, they can launch new image programs, fun logos and pithy taglines, but nothing will overcome their disgraceful – and well earned – reputation.

Ticketmaster’s survival will depend upon their success in applying raw, brute force to maintain their privileged position. For my part, I’ll be rooting for Veritix to take them down. Sic semper tyrannis.