WWE Supershow Albany, NY (a peak into my process for a difficult map w/screenshots)

WWE Supershow

Sun • Sep 12 • 7:00 PM

Times Union Center, Albany, NY

Available Tickets => 2,218

Estimated Capacity => 4,761

Tickets Distributed => 2,543 (53%)

Take a look at the screenshot below. I can get counts for every individual section if need be but the issues are in the red rectangles for this map. These are partially open sections. If I count the entire section, it will give misleading information (more "unavailable" tickets that would inflate the Tickets Distributed total). It's important I cut the noise out of the 'capacity' figure. If I can nail down a close estimate, the rest is easy. Since this is a house show, I do not need to account for a hard cam section. The sections with X's over them would typically be open and count but it's clear they were never opened to begin with so I eliminate those in the 2nd screenshot. Lets jump down to that screenshot..

What you see below is what I have to do for more difficult ticket maps (mostly non-Ticketmaster). With some photo editing software, I removed the noise from the above map. I shrunk the dots a touch so they aren't touching each other and then I ran it through my dot counting software which pulled up the number 5,235 for a capacity total. I then spot check the sections captured that are full counts and verified the software was 100% spot on. 

I only need this done once until they open up the sections in full. Once they do that, I can get the counts in under a minute. But for now, all I need to do is get the available ticket count and I'm good to go with this map (until they change it again). Typically this wouldn't be a difficult ticket map under normal circumstances but when they open up only half of many sections, that requires more work.

Note: There are other questionable rows in other sections but I'm confident those will open up at some point and they aren't large enough of a quantity to throw this estimate off. I call it giving them the benefit of the doubt. I do it for every promotion.