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ETM Vows There’ll Be Life After Pearl Jam

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

Pearl Jam’s move Wednesday to abandon its boycott of Ticketmaster Corp. could leave ETM Entertainment Network, the band’s Costa Mesa ticket agency, without any clients.

But executives of the start-up company that handled ticket sales for the grunge rock band’s current tour say they are undaunted and that they hope to capture a significant share of ticket sales revenue around the country.

The firm’s high-tech approach, which includes automated telephone ordering and bar-coded tickets, ultimately will help it lure other acts, said Peter Schniedermeier, ETM co-founder and senior vice president.

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Schniedermeier acknowledged, however, that the band’s actions this week illustrate the difficulties of competing with Ticketmaster, which has exclusive rights to many major concert venues.

“You have a monopoly out there, so people have to be very careful how they deal with it,” Schniedermeier said. “The whole issue about Pearl Jam is that they have to go out and play in the middle of the Sahara desert” to avoid Ticketmaster’s charges.

A Ticketmaster spokesman said he could not comment on ETM’s allegations because of a continuing Justice Department investigation.

ETM is negotiating to handle ticket sales with other well-known acts, Schniedermeier said, but he declined to name them.

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