Mr. Speaker, for each of the more than 1,200 performances presented annually on its stages, the National Arts Centre, NAC, sets aside a small number of tickets for marketing, promotions and charitable giveaways. These tickets, which are called excess inventory, are often reserved for invited guests of the performing artists and guests of the show’s promoter, and for other marketing purpose, for example, radio contest giveaways, and for not-for-profit organizations to help them fundraise, as well as, on some occasions, to elected and unelected officials so they may attend NAC performances that showcase their regions or constituents.
In response to (a), the NAC does not have a system that tracks the number of, or who receives, excess inventory tickets, including giveaways, charitable fundraising, and guests of the artist, the promoter or the NAC.
In response to (b), as per standard industry practice, set by industry leaders such as Ticketmaster, excess inventory tickets provide no revenue, because they would not have been sold, and therefore have no monetary value.