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Dan Geurin

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Should TED drop the price of attending their events?

I have been on TED for about 6 months now and I would love to attend an event, but the price seems steep to me. I know there is overhead involved with pulling these things together, but the price seems out of reach for most people. The last time I looked, a conference was $7,500 and a conference via satellite was $2,500. I'm not bashing, but is there another model that would allow more people to go to an event for less money? Any thoughts?

Topics: colaborative innovation money
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    Fritzie Reisner 100+

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    Host
    Dec 31 2012: Many TEDx events are priced to be accessible. Do look for TEDx events near you!

    I don't know NY geography, so here is the full list: http://www.ted.com/tedx/events?filter=&autocomplete_filter=New+York&when=&month=&year=&go=Go

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 31 2012: I wasn't aware that there were events closer to me. Where can i find out about events in the Northeast? I am in upstate NY.
      Thanks for the info!

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 31 2012: Thanks for the info. I just looked and saw some events in NY. How are these events affiliated with TED.? Is TED a brand name? Can anyone start an event under the name of TED? I'm kind of new to this so I would like to know what to expect. have you been to any local TEDx events?
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        Fritzie Reisner 100+

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        Dec 31 2012: Here is one thing I found by following the link you can access above that reads TEDx Events. http://www.ted.com/pages/organize_tedx_event. There is more information there as well which will tell you everything you likely want to know about TEDx.

        I attended a TEDxChange event in my location in 2012. If you look among the TED talks that are posted on this site, you will find that many are, in fact, from TEDx events rather than the two annual TED conferences.
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    Ken brown 30+

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    Dec 30 2012: Ted doesn't pay the speakers a fee, that time is donated.

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 31 2012: I have no idea what the structure of the whole TED entity is. I just know that $7,500 to attend any conference is a lot of money and $2,500 to go and watch it via large screen seems like even more money. When you add in travel costs, it could be too much for a lot of people.
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        Ken brown 30+

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        Dec 31 2012: Sorry Dan i did not realize you were relatively new to the site, my apologies but you can always count on Fritzie to help steer you towards any links relative to your Q.

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    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 30 2012: My hope would be a format that would not separate us based on how much we can afford to spend. You can only be active on a limited basis if you can't afford to go.
      You make a good point Mike! Thanks for your comment and adding to the conversation!
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    Ken brown 30+

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    Dec 30 2012: I know guys but they are a non profit and a non government service, Okay they might get some spinoff somewhere but the price hasn't risen each year has it?

    It is expensive but there is only two main events with the satellite events going on in each country and of course the local TEDx.

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 30 2012: My point is that maybe there should be more events at a cheaper price for more people to attend.
      Thank you for getting involved in the conversation Ken!
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        Ken brown 30+

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        Dec 30 2012: I don't know the full story of how these events are handled but what i do know is that ted grants the rights to an organizer to stage a tedx in their local areas but that's as far as ted gets involved.

        You understand that ted covers the costs of the attending speakers? I'm only guessing but more would require a much larger budget. You will not get professionals donating their time just for entertainment purposes, their busy people but i'm sure one or two have. I'm sure they have these plans for the future sometime and one of the other teddies would of popped up with a headsup on it but so far i haven't come across any.
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    Michelle Rosenthal

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    Dec 30 2012: Yes I think TED should drop the price of their events significantly and allow many more of the regular average people to sit in the audience. They do have some free fellowship opportunities but not enough. They can use a much larger room that will hold more people to make their over all profit even higher if that is important to them. They can allow people to view the conference online exactly as it is being filmed for a small price so they can make the money back from the reduced ticket price. They can allow the talks to be played in movie theaters around the world or on cable the same day as they are being filmed and for the price of a film admission they can watch at least one segment of the talks equal in time to a typical movie. If they want to see more they can purchase a second movie ticket and say another 2 hours. I would like to pay to see each day of the conference from my home, not just some of the talks that are posted but I can not afford the 1000.00 fee. They will help their ideas to spread much quicker if they allow more people to have access to all of the talks from past and future events. It would be nice to allow the TED audience to be able to film their own speeches as well from their home without having to go to a TED or TEDx event to be filmed. A TEDxHomeAudienceSpeaksOut may be a good idea where people can apply for a licence to film a 18 minute talk from hom displaying a TEDxHomeAudienceSpeaksOut and upload it to ted to review and post if appropriate. I hope they reduce the price and consider making more events around the world. There is a lot they can do to help spread these ideas even quicker for cheaper and to be more effective and more profitable to them in the end.

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 30 2012: I think more access for more people means a stronger TED in the long run. There are many people who would benefit from going to an event live. Thank you for your input Michelle!
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    Xavier Belvemont 30+

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    Dec 30 2012: I've had friends who have been to TEDx conferences (I don't know how accurately this applies to the actual TEDevents, but I assume theres some similarity).
    Apparently there isn't much that goes on as a real life observer than what goes on in the videos that would make the price tag worth while. Alot of standing and sitting and a few select talks that might not make it to the youtube channel(s) (but often for more negative reasons, such as image quality or limited entertainment value, rather than a v.i.p bonus, etc etc).

    My advice would be to just watch the videos online for free, atleast as I'm personally unconvinced the tickets should even be $75, let alone $7500

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 30 2012: Thanks Xavier!
      For me, it's a matter of principle as well. It's hard to rationalize spending that much money to attend seminars in person. I think we're all looking to be more involved but I feel like there is a ceiling for many of us because of cost.

  • george lockwood 20+

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    Dec 30 2012: I enjoy the talks - $7,500.00 is beyond my range - Maybe, the big supporters can start a scholarship program. I am glad TED is here.

    • Dan Geurin 10+

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      Dec 30 2012: I'm glad it's here as well. I just feel like the cost is too much. I would like to enjoy all aspects of TED instead of watching from the outside.
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