That's the Ticket!

Atlanta-based ticket distribution company Ticket Alternative has got the right idea — to provide venues and concert-goers with a quality ticketing experience refreshingly devoid of "convenience fees" (what's so convenient about spending more money, anyway?).

The goal of the company is simple: Provide an alternative to ticketing giant Ticketmaster and create a ticketing experience beneficial to all parties involved.

The Atlanta-based company was founded by Ian Bluett and Jamie Dwyer — two friends who finally got fed up with paying exorbitant convenience fees for concert tickets.

The company has grown significantly since its original inception, though, with outlets currently in 48 states with additional offices in the United Kingdom. Most of Ticket Alternative's clients are smaller venues with shows running between $10 and $25 a ticket, with service charges generally at $2 or less.

What may be most notable about Ticket Alternative, however, is the initiative they launched called "Campaign for a Ticketing Change." The campaign polled consumers about their previous ticketing experiences and what changes they wanted to see made to the industry in the future.

The company then compiled the results, which were overwhelmingly in favor of lower convenience fees, and sent them to venues all over the country.

In a press release, CEO and co-founder Dwyer said, "The results from the survey are an unequivocal indication that change is necessary and cannot be ignored, and the results should be strongly considered by venue owners nationwide. Bottom line — in this economy, music fans would prefer over anything else to pay lower convenience fees in order to be able to enjoy seeing their favorite acts."

With the recent merger between Ticketmaster and other entertainment goliath LiveNation in the works, it's good to see that there is a formidable David ready to throw a few stones of their own. And that's good news for us consumers!