Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Jack White's 2018 tour is banning cell phones completely. You will have to lock them up in Youndr bags and he will post HQ images following the concert you can tweet or post, etc...

There is a long thread at SH forums on it, and I was just wondering what DT has to say about it.

Keep in mind you still hold the phone, and can feel a vibration come through, you just need to go to the lobby to unlock to see text / use phone.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I have mixed feelings about this. I think it's fine to take a few photos to have record that you attended that concert of your favorite artist and maybe share a few on social media with friends.

However, as I've seen several concerts in Las Vegas, it is kind of annoying seeing a flock of people bust out their smart phones and record several songs in their entirety. I remember seeing someone record roughly 20 minutes straight at a Lionel Richie I was seeing in Vegas. And it's not like you're going to watch these again or can post them on social media. Facebook blocks posting copyrighted music.

I've been to a few venues that are very strict about not using cell phones. No photos or videos allowed. I went to see a Michael Jackson "Cover" concert in Macau last summer and the venue was very strict and phones can't be used at all for photos or videos even though this was just covers.

I went to a Celine Dion concert last year at Caesars Palace and they were cool with taking photos, but no to video. I saw ushers tell several people trying to take video to turn off their recorder.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I say ban them. It’s not going to kill people to live without their phones for a few hours or so. What benefit does it really do to have it during the show? To take a couple crappy photos or a bit of video? It’s distracting to others around. Personally when I’m at a show I just take in the experience. I can always post about the show before or after if I’m so inclined.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Yes. Totally ban their use during the show. So ridiculous to have to see nothing but a bunch of screens when your trying to visually enjoy the show. Phone (and Ipad!) screens are also one of the top reasons I've stopped trying to see movies in the theater.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

So what happens in the case of a incident like Vegas or the Pulse nightclub? Yondr doesn't even address this possibility on their website. Unless they can guarantee these bags can be unlocked in an instant no matter the location in the venue... these bags are a bad bad idea.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

How long is it gonna take thousands of people to unlock their phones and turn in a bag at the end of a show? Screw that. I like to get out of the venue as soon as the last note ends.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Interesting concept. I bet Jack White owns stocks in Yondr.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Chappelle (and others) has been using this for a while. It's nothing new. It's just being made a big deal because White put out a big warning.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I bring a pocket camera into shows, and 95% of the time, the venue is quite clear that this is okay. Even when I saw Lindsey Stirling at the Chicago Theatre (a upscale venue), the ushers walked around telling everyone that use of cameras was okay, just to turn off the flash.

I never raise the camera above my head out of courtesy, or if I do, it's for a quick photo, never video. People with cell phones never adhere to that though, they hold their cell phones up at full arm's reach, and the large 5-6" screens are lit back into the crowd behind them, so a handful of these during every song is distracting and blocks many people views.

If Jack White is providing photos and videos of each show, I can see how that may be good enough for 90% of the people, because posting these photos onto Facebook for me is a way for me to scroll back through my timeline to remember the shows that I went to, and see the occasional Facebook memory post of a long ago concert. And I'm fine if the policy is quite clear before you even purchase the ticket.

What is annoying is the 1 out 20 shows that has their own camera policy in place without notifying the crowd. I pay $160 for a VIP ticket, get a good spot up front, then after a few songs, pull out my camera (which security entering the venue was okay with), then get yelled at by the security in front of the stage, and usually like "put that camera away or we'll take it away!", "or we'll kick you out!" or something threatening, like I'm costing them their livelihood, or trying to rip off the artist or something.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I saw Chrissy Hynde a few years ago and she had a total ban of cameras. There were sings all over saying that she wanted people to experience the show and not see it from behind a screen. Ushers would flock over anyone who tried. It was actually pretty cool. She let folks take pictures during the encore though.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

^ King Crimson was the same way. Signs up before the show, including an announcement right before the band went on. Ushers were on high alert. The only time they said it was okay to bust out our cameras was when the band was done and Tony Levin took his out to take a picture of the audience.

I think it's a fine policy, but forcing people to put their phones in a locked pouch is... something else. I don't know how they would expect that to scale...

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

A Perfect Circle was the same way... they enforced the no cell phone policy via ushers and security. The Yondr bags are a nightmare waiting to happen in the event of an emergency.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Technically you are. The performance and all audio and video, including still photos are the property of the artist. They have the legal right to be the only ones who can manufacture and distribute.

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Yeah, they should just handle it by announcing the policy and then removing people who do not follow it.

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If it means I don't have to have some jackass next to me recording he entire show like when I saw NIN I would be for having snipers in the rafters.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

As if phones weren't annoying enough, you now have this :

http://i.imgur.com/QA0hX.jpg

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

For some reason, phones don't really bother me at shows, unless I focus on how many people have them out. Maybe the shows I go to don't have as many, since I typically go to smaller metal concerts. Anyway, aside from the mess exiting the venue, I wouldn't have a problem with venues locking up people's phones. If they could have a proximity-sensing bag, one that automatically unlocks as you exit through doors, that would probably alleviate the concerns about both an emergency and the mass exodus after a show.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I have ticket stubs from the 90s that say "No Cameras or Recording Equipment Allowed". Of course this was back when any equipment was bulky and it had only a single purpose at a concert.

With cellphones having the ability to record perfectly clear HD video and their absolute necessity in people's lives today, it's much harder to regulate and enforce.

I look at it this way; I paid $180 to see a concert, I want to be "present" at the show. I don't wanting to be farting-around looking at the screen making sure the subject is in focus and the framing is correct.

Besides, after the show, you go on youtube and there's always someone who had a way better seat than you who sat there recording the entire show. I'd rather watch their angle if I really need to see it again.

Take a few pictures, maybe a few seconds of video? Fine.

One thing I realized about taking video and I learned this as a parent recording my kids birthdays, school concerts etc is that I was never really "there". I was so concerned with keeping focus, keeping the framing balanced that I didn't even "see" the show.

I ended-up with video proof of an event that I attended but was never really a part of.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

How tall are you? That stat is indirectly proportional to how much cell phones will annoy you at a concert.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I really like taking photos and video at concerts but I only take a handful of shots, and maybe record a song or two.

Obviously different venues and different artists have different rules. Taylor Swift's show allowed phones but not cameras with detachable lenses or videorecorders. Pentatonix allowed video and told people to post on social media, as did Chris Botti. When I saw Regina Spektor, they had staff roaming around the audience, and I assumed they were cracking down on photos/video, but I never saw an explicit statement about it. I did grab a few shots.

YouTube will crack down on artist content, but in my experience Instagram won't. They only allow video clips of up to one minute, though.

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I was really stunned at the end of my last concert to see that people had switched from holding up lighters at the end of the show to holding up their phones instead. Yeah I'm old. LOL

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I was at a comedy show on Friday (Joe Rogan) and he had everyone put their phones in those locking bags before you could get into the venue.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I upload my videos onto YouTube and they always remain up. I don't put ads on any of my videos, so that may be one reason the labels are okay with my videos.

Many of my videos do say "Includes Copyrighted content" next to them, which I assume is the label taking ownership of the content and generating ad revenue for themselves which I'm okay with.

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I wish all cell phones could be banned from all concerts and movie theaters. It's gotten so bad, I have just about quit going to both because some jackass can't put their phone down. It ruins the experience of seeing something live as it happens.

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I am not a fan of this at all. I can see it for comedians and for artists playing in a small venue or surprise secret shows. But for any major artists playing in sheds, arenas, or stadiums I oppose this vehemently. Cell phone use is far below other major annoyances at shows and until they decide to ban (AND REALLY ENFORCE) alcohol, pot use, tobacco , vaping, mosh pits, crowd surfing, signs, needless yapping to your friends, and dancing around with no spatial awareness of where they are with relation to other people as those are magnitudes more annoying than cell phone use.

I just do not support a complete ban on cell phones as I honestly think it is cool looking out and seeing all those lights and I love bands and artists that embrace it and play around with it. U2 being a good example but many others do it as well.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Nope, nope, nope. Nope.

Then again I go to metal shows and stand in or near the pit. You're not having your phone out for long there.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I've only had one removed from a prominent national artist and got a "strike" on my account. However, I tend to err on the side of caution when putting stuff on YT. I've never had a problem on Instagram or Facebook except for one time when I tried to post a short movie clip that had a song in its soundtrack that was killed. I assume auto-matching doesn't work quite as well for live performances.

I like having my phone at concerts but would never use it during a movie. And it depends on the kind of concert too. I wouldn't use it at a classical concert or a stage show.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

At a Phish concert a few years back I was in awe when the arena actually filled up with lighters, hadn't seen that done in years, then I remembered what concert I was at.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

5'9"

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

That's a surprise. Average height. I'm imagining a lot of people at gigs are already taller than you, and holding cell phones makes it worse. I'm actually slightly below average height, so it never fails that if it isn't cell phones in the air, some six-and-a-half-footer will work his way through the crowd and pick a spot directly in front of me.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I was recording a show in Japan once using a camcorder. It wasn't bothering anyone because I had it at eyeball height, and because the concert hall floor was slightly tiered, I had a clear sightline to the stage over the levels and people in front of me. But probably the only 6'3" Japanese male in the country decided to come stand in my sightline, ruining the bottom middle part of the recording.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Issue is, even though I hardly ever use my phone during a show - before the show, I'm usually texting friends who will also be at the show, telling them where I am (i.e., "stage left, half way up"), and where/when to meet up, etc. I'm not talking about emergencies either. This is just how we communicate now. This communication is now such an ingrained part of regular life for most (all?) people, that getting rid of it is a huge detriment.

And speaking for White, personally, I think there's a fair amount of entitled vanity in him doing this.
If it were up to him, he'd probably rather people arrive at his show in a horse-drawn carriage instead of a car.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

And texting is a million times better in that situation than calling. Not that it matters if all phones are banned, of course, but it’s a fact.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I think it's kind of idiotic to assume that in today's culture, any large gathering of people will leave their phones behind. Sounds like a good idea, but it just doesn't work.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

so what happens with the locking bags? You need to go back and get the phone like a coat check or something? that would seriously irk me...

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Why not just leave them in the car. Or at home. I've been smoking for 45 years and am hopelessly addicted, yet I can easily go without for hours at a time.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I have 2 kids, 12 and 14 yrs old and we occasionally leave them at home while we go to a show. They are responsible enough to be left alone, but I would not be comfortable with them not being able to contact me. Also we live in a day and age where things like Las Vegas have occured.

Of course I wasn't aware that you maintain possession of the phone, but you still need to go outside to unlock it which is a PITA.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

Some people who think they have to have their phone attached to their hips 24/7 would have never made it in the 70's or 80's. We went everywhere (movies, concerts, restaurants, etc) and were fine.

Re: Should Cell Phones Be Banned at Concerts?
 

I don't really care either way but people who record vertical videos at concerts and then put them up on YouTube should be flogged. Just turn your phone sideways and it will fill up the screen dammit!