According to Billboard's Boxscore chart, 2014 is the best year for concert attendance in 20 years, mostly because so many major acts have added stadiums to their tours this year. In fact, Live Nation has promoted 72 concert shows this year alone, and predict to have more than 100 by the end of the year.
Most stadiums pack in anywhere from 40,000 to 80,000 people, as compared to only 20,000 in the largest music-only arenas and amphitheaters. Whether the sound is better is debatable, but that doesn't seem to be a deterrent to the fans that purchase tickets.
Interestingly enough, the fact that you can play to 3 times as many people doesn't automatically mean that you can automatically make 3 times the money. The costs also jump proportionally anywhere from 2 to 3 times as well, since more sound and video equipment is required, so there's quite a risk involved. The margins on a tour are very thin to begin with, with the promoter getting around 1% and the act around 30%, so any miscalculation can mean a huge bath for everyone involved.
Still, this seems to be a good year to be in the concert business, and business, as they say, is booming.
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