NJ’s Second Shot At Boss Tix

Bruce Springsteen fans who filed complaints with New Jersey’s Division of Consumer Affairs in the weeks following the February Ticketmaster onsale are getting a second chance to score seats.

The New Jersey Sports and Exposition authority will release 1,000 additional tickets for each of the Boss’ scheduled shows at the Izod Center in East Rutherford May 21 and May 23 during a March 31 drawing.

Part of an agreement between Ticketmaster and the state, the drawing aims to resolve a reported 1,861 complaints received from people who received error messages and redirects during the Feb. 2 sale.

Winners will be offered the chance to purchase two tickets to either of the shows at face value. Those who aren’t selected to buy tickets for the shows will receive a $100 Ticketmaster gift certificate and the opportunity to purchase pre-sale tickets for a future New Jersey Springsteen show. To be eligible for the drawing, fans must have filed a “valid” complaint regarding the Feb. 2 onsale before Feb. 17.

“This settlement swiftly and fairly resolves a significant issue for thousands of loyal Springsteen fans in the Garden State who believe that Ticketmaster tilted the playing field against their efforts to purchase tickets to the May concerts,” Attorney General Anne Milgram said in a statement. “Everyone deserves an equal chance to buy tickets on a primary ticket selling Web site and shouldn’t be steered to a reselling Web site where the prices can be substantially higher.”

According to the deal, Ticketmaster has agreed not to link from its primary site to the secondary TicketsNow site for one year. The company will also prohibit the sale of tickets on the TicketsNow site prior to the official onsale date.