Introduction
Many members are new to the OGAE ESC fan ticket process and so this document serves to provide some background information and advice on how the process usually works. It must be emphasized that firm details have not yet been published so these notes are for guidance only.
As previously communicated, any ticket packages that OGAE UK is offered will be allocated to members in an order determined by a ballot process. In this way the allocation is as fair as possible. Our process recognizes the loyalty of long standing members but also allows access to tickets to new club members.
So far, over 340 UK members have expressed interest in buying OGAE fan tickets for the ESC 2017, and we are trying to secure the largest possible allocation from the organisers and OGAE International. In 2016 we managed to secure 352 packages. As of yet we do not know how many -if any- ticket packages will be made available to OGAE International, and so it is impossible to give an estimate of how many we may receive. Similarly, we are unable to confirm whether the fan packages will be for standing or sitting places.
Who may participate in the ballots?
All OGAE UK members (with the exception of honorary members) are eligible to participate in the ballot process. However, only members who have an OGAE International membership card OR have supplied the required photo may participate in the ballot. National ticket allocations are based on the number of membership cards issued to each club, and OGAE International only permits the use of fan tickets by members who are in possession of a current card (see below for further details if you do not currently have a card).
Members may only request ONE fan package for their own personal use. You cannot request/buy for other people. If you have friends who wish to join you, they will need to join OGAE UK themselves and enter the ballot in their own right.
Ballot structure
There will be two separate ballots:
- BALLOT 1 for all members who joined before 1 June 2016
- BALLOT 2 for members who joined (or re-joined) after 1 June 2016
Tickets will be allocated first to ballot 1 and then to ballot 2. Any members who apply for tickets after the ballot deadline will be placed on a waiting list and will be allocated tickets in the order in which they applied if and when any become available after all ballot participant requests have been met.
Ballot pairings
As in 2016, members will have an opportunity to nominate a second individual with whom to be paired for the purposes of the ballot. This is in no way compulsory, but allows joint members or friends who travel together to be treated as one unit for the purposes of the ballots, thus giving them a little more certainty when making their travel plans. Both applicants MUST be current members of OGAE UK. ALL members will have an equal status in the ballots; no one will be disadvantaged by the pairing process. Please note, however, that where members who joined before 1 June 2016 ask to be paired with members who joined after that date, they will both be placed in Ballot 2.
OGAE Fan Tickets
We have not yet received any details of the fan tickets that may be made available to OGAE in 2017. It is entirely up to the organisers to decide what (if anything) they will offer us. Historically, OGAE has been offered fan packages consisting of a ticket for each of the live shows, each of the ‘jury finals’ and, on occasion, we have also had access to some the rehearsals. In 2016 fan packages consisted of tickets to 6 separate shows on each of the days during Eurovision week.
The ticket packages are usually priced at around £300, often representing a considerable discount over buying the tickets individually. As a result, the packages cannot be split, ie you CANNOT purchase tickets for the semi finals or finals only, and unwanted tickets must not be sold and should only be passed on to other members with the agreement of OGAE. It is important that we comply with these requirements as we need to respect the good value and privileged status represented by the fan ticket packages.
As a result of the nature of the fan packages, they may not be the best option for members who only plan to attend the Grand Final on the Saturday evening. In recent years, some members have sold on tickets that they did not wish to use. This is strictly prohibited but has, to a degree, been tolerated in the past, so long as tickets went to other club members and OGAE was advised. However, there were a number of unpleasant incidents and complaints in the past few years resulting from tickets that had been sold on. As a result, we intend to enforce the rules more rigidly, and for 2017, any member who contravenes the fan ticket rules by selling or passing on tickets without OGAE UK’s express agreement, will be suspended from OGAE UK ticketing for the next two years.
If you are unable to attend ALL the live shows, it is recommended that you purchase your tickers in the public sale. Details of this will be announced on the official Eurovision website in due course (www.eurovision.tv), but as yet, no concrete details have been announced on dates or pricing.
Standing or Sitting
In recent years, the floor of the arena has been designated as a standing zone. In 2013 OGAE was only offered standing places as part of the fan packages. After pressure from OGAE International, the Malmö organisers offered a very small number of seated packages for those who were physically unable to stand. In Copenhagen, Vienna and Stockholm, intensive negotiations resulted in a higher number of seated places being made available but there was still insufficient to meet demand.
We do not yet know whether OGAE tickets will be for standing or sitting places. OGAE International will attempt to secure the best possible mix of standing and seating ticket packages. We will address this issue as and when we receive additional information. It is reasonable to assume that demand for seats will probably outstrip supply. If this is the case and you are lucky enough to secure a seat, please make sure that you use it. There were a number of complaints in previous that members secured seats but then chose instead to join the fans in the standing area. This was unfair to those who had wanted a seat and particularly to those who actually withdrew from the ticket ballot when they could not be allocated a seat.
If limited seats are made available, these will be offered first to people with a genuine medical requirement, and we may have to ask people to provide a relevant doctor’s note to support their request. Any information sent to us will be kept strictly confidential.
If you do not have a medical reason for requiring a seated package, you can still request one. We will do our best to meet people’s preferences but cannot guarantee this. After seated packages have been allocated to those with medical requirements, they will be offered to those requesting them in draw order. Therefore, we may not be able to guarantee your preferences.
For those of you who are offered a seated package, we will try our best to honour requests to sit together with other members, although this cannot be guaranteed. We will not be able to discuss this until we know the details of how many seated packages we receive.
How to apply
If you wish to apply for the ballot process, please complete the online application form which can be found on the OGAE UK official website. Please note that ALL applicants must accept the terms and conditions by ticking the box, and sign the form by typing their full name to acknowledge that they have read and accepted the ballot terms and conditions. The form should be submitted no later than 11.59pm GMT on 17 November 2015. Any applications made after this date will NOT be entered into the ballot. Please note that it may be necessary to bring this deadline forward in the event that OGAE International requests final submissions before this date. We will notify all members with as much notice as we can if this is the case.
Membership Cards
You will see that the application form asks for your OGAE International membership card number. As usual, OGAE fan tickets may only be used by the holder of an OGAE International membership card. OGAE International will check that all ticket buyers have a card. Asking for the card number also means that members will have to check that they still have their cards. If you have lost your card, please let us know by 31 October 2016 so that a replacement can be ordered, although please note that a £5 replacement charge will be levied.
For those who do not yet have a membership card, you can still apply to join the ballots but your application will only be accepted if you have provided the required photo by the ballot deadline. We will check each ballot application and if you have not supplied a photo we will contact you, so there is no need to write asking for confirmation that we have your photo on file (see below).
For those who have not yet received a card, please be advised that they are produced centrally in Finland for all European clubs and there is only one routine production run per year. The next batch of cards should be with us around April and we will then distribute them to you.
Membership Numbers
The application form also asks for your OGAE UK membership number. This can be found on the envelope that your Vision magazine is sent in. The next issue of Vision is due to be delivered towards the end of October. If you do not know your membership number, just leave blank, this is included to make things easier when validating your eligibility for the ballot.
Withdrawal from the Ballot Process
This year, no deposits will be required. However, if you wish to withdraw from the application process after your application has been submitted, you must advise the Ticket Coordinator as soon as possible. If you withdraw under any of the following circumstances:
- Where an applicant commits to buying an OGAE fan package and then does not complete the ticket purchase
- Where an applicant withdraws from the ballot AFTER OGAE UK is required to provide final ticket request numbers to OGAE International
members may be suspended from OGAE UK ticket processes for the following two years. The final decision will be made on a case by case basis by the OGAE UK committee, and members will be informed of the outcome.
No one will be asked to make a firm commitment to purchase a ticket without knowing the full price and the nature of the tickets involved.
Ticket Sale Timeline
In the ideal world, we would all prefer the OGAE fan tickets to be put on sale before the start of public ticket sales. This would give OGAE members some clarity and would give those unsuccessful in the ballot a second chance to secure tickets through the public sale. Every year OGAE International makes this request to the organisers but things never quite go according to plan. We all have to remember that OGAE tickets are not a high priority for the organisers, who can sell all the tickets to the live shows very easily and quickly without our help (something they always point out during negotiations with OGAE International). Basically, we need them more than they need us, and we are entirely at their mercy.
In the event that the public sale starts before the final allocation of fan packages, we recognise that members will be faced with the dilemma of whether to buy directly or keep faith with the OGAE process. We will do everything we can to avoid this scenario but we cannot guarantee that this will not happen. If any members do buy in the public sale before finalisation of the OGAE packages, it is essential that they advise us so that their tickets can be re-allocated.
Application Processing
Once we receive your ballot application you will receive an automated email confirming receipt of the application. We will then check that all the required details have been provided. If you have not provided a membership card number, we will check that we have your photo on file and that a card will therefore be ordered for you for 2017. If we do not have an appropriate photo on file, we will contact you. You must then provide a photo by the ballot deadline and will not be added to the ballot until one is received.
We will then determine in which ballot you will participate based on your date of joining/re- joining. If you have asked to be paired with someone in a different ballot, we will contact you.
You will only be entered into the ballot once we have a completed application and you either have a current membership card or have provided a photo. If all these items are in order, we will contact you via e-mail to advise you that you will be entered into the ballot along with confirmation of the ballot to which you have been allocated.
We will aim to send out confirmation e-mails within 14 days of the receipt of all the required information. This process represents quite an administrative burden and so it would be very much appreciated if applications could be submitted as early as possible, rather than waiting for the final few days before the deadline.
The ballot will be carried out at the OGAE UK AGM on 19 November 2016. After the ballot has taken place, the results will be communicated to all participants via e-mail.
Ticket Allocation and Purchase
As soon as we receive an allocation of tickets from OGAE International, we will advise all those who have been successful in the ballot. If any members have not managed to secure tickets in the initial allocation, there may be a chance that additional tickets will become available and we will keep the relevant people informed.
We have still not been advised of the actual ticket purchase process, but it is anticipated that it will be similar to the last five years when tickets could be bought over the internet from the official ticket agency. You will be advised of the exact procedures when they are made available.
Please remember that, as in previous years, you may need to first buy a ticket voucher through the sales agent and then exchange this for the actual tickets once you arrive in Kyiv. This has happened in two of the last five years so it is important to factor the possible need to collect tickets into your travel plans (ie don’t plan on arriving in Kyiv just before the start of a show!).
The ticket process is always a bit of an emotional roller coaster and the next few months will inevitably be a nervous and, at times, stressful period for those who want to attend the shows in Kyiv. All of us at OGAE UK will do our very best to keep you informed of developments and to maximise the number of tickets that we can secure. Keep an eye on your e-mails including your spam folder, and update us immediately if your contact details change.
Good Luck!
