the price of

season ticket

Average ticket

prices not an

exact science

JASON QUICK

Lessons from Economics 101 echoed throughout the Rose Garden on Thursday when the Trail Blazers announced a 6.7 percent average spike in season ticket prices for next season as the result of a simple concept: Supply and demand.

With a young and promising roster that features Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Fernandez and Greg Oden, the Blazers have become a hot ticket in the Rose Garden. The team has sold out its past 50 games and leads the NBA in "drop count" attendance --the actual number of bodies going through the turnstiles --with an average of 18,200 a game.

Because of its popularity, and burgeoning success, the team is eliminating the promotional price categories it created three years ago when the team was among the NBA's worst in both play and behavior. Much like those discounted prices were done out of survival when the team was a tough sell, the Blazers say the price increases for next season were done out of survival to stay among the average in NBA ticket prices.

The Blazers say their average ticket yield is $45.59, which places them in the bottom third of NBA ticket prices, below the league average of $65.70.

"This allows us to bring our tickets in sync with normal NBA value," said Sarah Mensah, the Blazers' chief marketing officer. "The whole overall goal here is getting us to the level of viability where Portland can support a professional team."

Deciphering average ticket prices seems to be an uncertain science. Team Marketing Research says the Blazers this season have the seventh highest ticket average in the NBA at $61.21, above the league average of $49.47. Meanwhile, StubHub last February said the Blazers had the fifth cheapest average ticket at $58.

The Blazers say their figures are taken directly from the NBA and factor in their unique Loyalty Rewards program for season ticket holders. The program allows discounts for season ticket holders depending on their years of purchasing tickets: A 20-year season ticket holder receives a 20 percent discount. A 10-year season ticket holder 10 percent, etc. Mensah said 24 percent of the team's 10,000-plus season ticket holders have been with the team at least 20 years.

The Blazers' ticket increase comes during a sagging national and state economy, and on the same day the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics announced their ticket prices for next season will stay the same. Earlier this week, the San Antonio Spurs said they froze their ticket prices and were offering a break on their 2009 playoff tickets.

The Blazers said the increase comes because of the demand for their product. A list of 40,000 potential season ticket buyers has been compiled from lists of fans who have purchased partial season tickets or ticket packages. Also, the team said the fans most greatly affected by the change --fans sitting in the upper sections of lower-bowl end zones --will have the chance to either upgrade or be moved to a different location in the same price range. Prices for those sections will increase from $30 a ticket to $45 a ticket.

The price increases affect only the lower-bowl season ticket holders. All 300 level prices remain the same, and the Blazers say they will exceed the league-mandated allotment of 500 tickets priced at $10 or less by offering 1,000 tickets at $9.

"There is tremendous demand, the team is on the rise, and there is no question the value of the product has improved," Mensah said. "And with the economy and people losing their jobs, we wanted to find a solution of getting everyone to a game, but still preserve the integrity of the goal to make the Trail Blazers viable."

Season ticket holders have until March 16 to renew.

Jason Quick: 503-221-4372;

jasonquick@news.oregonian.com

Read his Behind the Beat blog at

blog.oregonlive.com/

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