Power to the People

(Promo) There's a pivotal moment in the classic rock concert film “Woodstock,” when an announcer bellows: “It's now a free concert, man!”

He should have only known. For the 12th annual heavy metal tour known as Ozzfest, getting under way July 12 in Seattle, all of the tickets for the 24-city run across the country will be free.

Never before has the festival formula been so turned upside down, with the whole financial burden being placed on sponsors.

Ozzfest will have less than half the number of sponsors it did last year. But they reportedly are being charged nearly twice as much as what they paid in the past.

They include Jägermeister, For Your Entertainment (FYE), Monster Energy, and Hustler Lingerie, although more are expected to be announced. More than 95% of the tickets at each show will be distributed by the sponsors for their own giveaways.

The decision to go free this time around came from Sharon Osborne, wife and manager of one-time Black Sabbath lead singer Ozzy Osborne, and tour promoter LiveNation.

“For the last few years, ticket prices have steadily climbed as artists demand more and more money for summer tours,” Sharon Osborne stated in February when the tour was announced. “We certainly want everybody to make money; however, we also want the kids to be able to afford to come out and have an incredible experience.”

A limited number of Osborne's new specially marked CDs contain a code for a first chance at two Ozzfest seats. Osborne will be among each show's six or seven acts.

Another unusual wrinkle this year is that the artists for the most part are not getting paid. Subsequently, no superstar bands like Metallica, which had headlined previous Ozzfests, are on the bill. But “baby bands” have lined up to fill the void. They're incentivized by being allowed to keep the proceeds from CD and t-shirt sales at the venues, and can accept paid gigs on the off days in the vicinity.

What does a sponsor get out of it?

“It's all about sampling,” responds Joe Parsons, who oversees motor sports marketing for Monster Energy, but has also been involved with the brand's participation in Ozzfest the past three years.

Monster Energy will hand out free cans of its beverage at six locations within every concert venue. And beginning June 1, specially marked Monster Energy four-packs and the new Monster eight-pack will offer purchasers a chance to win a pair of Ozzfest tickets.

Fellow sponsor Jägermeister, because of its alcoholic content and related local laws, cannot indulge in the sampling opportunities presented at a live show. But its presence will be felt in other ways on the tour.

“As for the promotional value, there will be several thousand people at any one time viewing the Jägermeister stage,” says Amanda Lechner, marketing brand manager for Sidney Frank Importing Co., Inc., which distributes Jägermeister. “This exposure is priceless to us.”

Lechner adds that Jgäermeister gets “access to great seats, which we provide to our VIPs. Ozzfest serves as a great tool for us to provide our key accounts, distributors with an experience they don't see every day.”

For music retailer FYE, Ozzfest represents an opportunity to sell product but also reinforce the brand with attendees, explains Matt Williams, marketing manager of events and sponsorships for FYE parent Trans World Entertainment (TWE).

TWE has in the past year phased out various retail chain names such as Sam Goody, Coconuts and Wherehouse Music, and converted them to FYE, where Ozzfest is being promoted with in-store signage.

This year's Ozzfest will be the seventh at which TWE has sponsored a booth where fans can get band autographs and photos with the musicians. “That's the only thing they can't download: a live visit with the band,” quips Williams.

What does TWE think about this year's model? “We thought it was pretty crazy,” Williams says.

“The Hustler brand has seen a tremendous resurgence recently in the younger markets, and we see this tour as an opportunity to build on the excitement that's surrounding the name right now,” notes Brian Wagner, marketing and PR director for Hustler Lingerie. “It's also an amazing venue for market research, as this grassroots type of marketing/vending allows us to get in front of so many different types of people in so many different cities.”

There is some skepticism that the new Ozzfest formula will work financially for all parties concerned.

“It's a reflection of a shift in today's touring industry,” says Dan Joyce, a financial analyst with Miller Tabak & Co., who tracks LiveNation. “[Free] is definitely an interesting prospect,” he adds.

But Joyce is not sure LiveNation will be able to make up the loss of ticket revenue with enough concessions and parking. It's no accident that every stop on the tour is a venue that LiveNation owns.

Artist-wise, the tour will have to rely on younger bands because established acts will not play for free. “Tours are where they make money,” comments Joyce.

He expects the sponsors might make out best. By having only a handful of commercialized messages at the event, “there's less clutter and the sponsorships are worth more. It'll produce more impressions, and justify [for LiveNation] greater revenue coming from them.”

“I don't think [going free is] a trend,” opines Gary Bongiovanni, editor of "Pollstar," the concert industry's leading trade publication. “You can't make any significant money by not selling tickets.” He adds: “It's a good experiment that's never been done before. But I don't think it's a business model that again will be followed.”