Netizens criticize HYBE for ticket prices for the first NewJeans fan meeting
HYBE is still the focus of criticism lately, and the latest concerns the NewJeans group’s first fan meetup.
NewJeans is a group that debuted in 2022 and from the start managed to establish itself as one of the most popular kpop groups.
On May 12th, ADOR, the group’s agency, announced that NewJeans will host their first fan meetup, “Bunnies Camp,” on July 1st and 2nd.
The colorful and appropriately designed Bunnies Camp poster announced a range of merchandise that perfectly matched the concept of the group.
Given the band’s massive popularity, it goes without saying that fans were ecstatic! However, upon reading the fan meetup information, many began to criticize HYBE for its pricing, especially considering many of the group’s fans are young.
While actual tickets cost KRW 99,000 regardless of your seat, online tickets are expensive: a single day costs KRW 59,400 and a two-day pass (for members with a membership) costs 110,000 ₩ KRW (about 75 euros).
The fact is that online ticket prices are considered very high.
In fact, the ticket prices are not shocking to the people who go there. However, when netizens saw the ticket prices for streaming, they were shocked. Some still said they were no longer surprised by HYBE’s “ticket race”.
- “If it’s expensive, that’s all HYBE. »
- “It’s so expensive. HYBE is seriously evil. »
- “I’m so mad at HYBE…they also asked for 150,000 KRW for my 3-day online fan meeting. »
- “Damn HYBE. Stop raising prices. »
- “HYBE is really evil. Why is the price of an online fan meeting so high? »
This isn’t the first time HYBE has been criticized for going after profit at all costs.
For example, changes have been made to the Weverse platform and these changes require the payment of a price.
While most services have always been free, the company has unveiled a new premium subscription. Fans were shocked when previously free services like instant replay and subtitles became part of an expensive package.
In addition, HYBE will launch its own fan-to-artist messaging service called “Weverse DM”. The service will allow fans to “exchange direct messages with their beloved artists just like they do with friends.”
In addition, fans can receive photos, videos and emojis from their favorite artists, and the service can be purchased through “Jelly”, an official Weverse digital currency. The reactions to it were very mixed.
Another example: Hybe has announced that it will use a dynamic pricing system for its artists’ concert tickets.
This pricing system fluctuates and increases the price of the ticket according to its demand. Several factors that influence ticket prices are, in particular, the number of tickets available, the time remaining until the event and the overall demand after the event.
For many, HYBE’s announcement of all sub-label artists raised concerns that the company was losing its core music ethos.
As for the NewJeans fan gathering, many also fear that the group’s fan base is quite young and thus unable to pay for the streaming tickets.
What do you think ?
