The Best One Yet - 🎸 “Justice for Swiftees” — Ticketmaster’s Senate grilling. Amazon’s $5 drug buffet. Brazil & Argentina’s joint currency.

Episode Date: January 25, 2023

Remember that Taylor Swift ticket fiasco? Welp, the US Senate just summoned Ticketmaster’s President to Washington for a grilling about the future of concert tickets. Amazon just launched a $5/month unlimited generic medication subscription — first they hook us, then they book us. And the presidents of Brazil and Argentina just announced plans for a joint currency - but Wall Street doesn’t believe it will happen. $LYV $AMZN $USDFollow The Best One Yet on Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok: @tboypodAnd now watch us on YoutubeWant a Shoutout on the pod? Fill out this formGot the Best Fact Yet? We got a form for that tooLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Wednesday, January 25th. And today's pause, for a very particular reason, is the best one yet. Nick and I are in the flesh. Yes. In San Francisco. You look fantastic.

This studio has the best view I've ever seen. It's like a seal over there, a porpoise over there? Or maybe it's not. So much marine activity. Yeah, there is. It is a very aquarium kind of a scene. Yeties, we are on the San Francisco Bay because tomorrow we are interviewing a fantastic founder for a bonus. It's kind of going to be a superiors.

It's kind of going to be a surprise. We know it's going to be. Bonus pod next week. Next week. In the meantime, Jack, what's our first story for today's pod? Remember that Taylor Swift ticket drama from last year? Do I ever, Jack? Well, Ticketmaster just testified before Congress on the future of concert tickets.

Second story, what do we got? Amazon just launched a $5 a month subscription for unlimited generic drugs. Hook them with the outrageously low prices. Book them with prize. For our third and final story. We've got the U.S. dollar, the Euro. We may soon have a third power currency. A third power currency.

Argentina and Brazil just announced plans for a shared currency. Much obrugas. But yet is, before we hit that fantastic mix. A wonderful mix with all that marine life as well, last week, we told you about Netflix's earnings report. Yeah, we also told you the CEO of Netflix is stepping down. There was one thing about Netflix. We didn't tell you.

Yeah, there was one thing buried. in that Netflix news we didn't say. Netflix is hiring for one very specific role. Get this, Netflix is hiring a flight attendant. But not just any flight attendant. No, not just any flight attendant. They are going to pay this flight attendant $385,000. Okay, so Jack and I repeat, Netflix.

The media tech company is hiring a flight attendant for their airplane. And paying that flight attendant like a prince. They're paying up to $385,000 a year. for this private jet flight attendant. To work on a PJ. So Nick and I jumped in T-boy style to the job description that's publicly available. Okay, first of all, Yetis,

you must be able to assist with purchasing aircraft snacks. Second, you must be able to lift up to 30 pounds and help the passengers with luggage. Third, you must be able to stand for long periods of time. This is the opposite of the Netflix binging experience. This does not work if you actually enjoy watching Netflix. But the reason Netflix is going to pay so much for this flight attendant, Why are they going to pay so much for this G6 job, Jack?

Because it's not about handling passengers. No. It's about handling information. Netflix said that it is of the utmost importance that this person exhibit discretion. Discretion. Discretion. Because you'll be on board with some celebrity actors and actresses. Besties, you're going to be privy to the private powwows of some very powerful power people.

Spielberg. Nice to see you again. If you got this job, you're going to know who the killer is in Glass Onion before anyone else. You're going to know who the demigorgon in season 14 of Stranger Things is. You're going to know if Emily is in Paris. This isn't a job we're talking about. No, it is not. This is one giant spoiler alert.

Discretion is of the utmost importance. But Yetis, before we offer you this job, are you ready, willing, and able to assist in the event of an emergency? We need to hear you say yes. Can you put your seatbelt and tray tables in their full, upright, and locked positions? Thank you for applying in the friendly skies with Netflix. We'll be starting our pie. Can we just take off?

Not until you put your phone into airplane mode, sir. Ooh, actually, can you slide that bag under the chair in front of you? You gotta be kidding me. Oh my God. Thanks, let's in our three stories. Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm. They had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best.

50% that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're ready to go. We can't wait no more. So just start the show. Start the show. For our first story, the Taylor Swift ticket hearings finally happened on Capitol Hill yesterday. The crime under investigation.

What is Jack? Depriving the Swifties of tickets to Taylor's summer concert tour. Third-degree deprivation of tickets to the Swifties, Jack. Immediate justice. Spoiler. In Washington, D.C. yesterday, Taylor was not there. No, she was in Nashville. The senators brought their sharpies.

They brought their posters. But their children were disappointed because no autographs were made. Well, Jack, there was no star at yesterday's Capitol Hill Taylor Swift hearings, but there was one villain. A big villain. Yeah. Ticketmaster. Ticket master. Because in November yet, he's Ticketmaster, completely botched that entire pre-sale for Taylor Swift's summer tour. Ticketmaster, owned by $18 billion live nation. This is a company that holds a monopoly on live events in the United States. But here's the thing, besties, it wasn't the $30 ticket fees or those convenient fees or the fee fees that caused an uprising with Taylor's. Swift's concert. No. What got

Ticketmaster before Capitol Hill was the pressure of millions of furious Swifties. So yesterday, Republicans and Democrats got together in a united way and did their favorite thing. What is it, Jack? They took turns berating

the president of Live Nation on C-SPAN in front of a live studio audience. Yet he's Live Nation's president apologized, but blamed this whole debacle on the Swifties. If so many Swifties hadn't gone to the website, the website wouldn't have crashed. And then he also blamed the automated scalper bots that buy up a lot of concert tickets. Ticket buying robots are a real problem and they turn a real

profit. That's unfair. Now, that's what the president of Live Nation said, but the senators of the United States named a very specific culprit. The senators blamed this whole fiasco on competition. Sorry, lack of competition in the ticketing space. Because Ticketmaster hasn't upgraded their computers to avoid outages. Because they haven't had to. And Ticketmaster reportedly takes home 72% of concert revenues yet won't give artists a bigger slice. Because they don't have to. And why does Ticketmaster not have to do these things, Jack? Because they dominate the live events industry. 70% of live events in ticketing in the United States. Yeah, that Live Nation feocry we all live in, it's one reason that concert ticket prices have quadrupled since 1996. For those keeping score, that is double

the rate of inflation because ticket master is a monopoly. The problem is you, ticket master. So Jack, what's the takeaway for the anti-heroes over at Live Nation? The biggest threat to Ticketmaster isn't the government. It's Taylor Swift herself. Okay, Yetis. Senators were so angry yesterday at Ticketmaster. They asked the Justice Department to undo the 2010 merger that created this ticket monopoly.

But here's the thing. It's really hard for the government to split up a big corporation. It's really hard because the power of our institutions to reel in corporate power, it's weakened. But while the government powers have weakened, you know what power has strengthened? What power, Jack? The power of individual megastars like Taylor Swift. Yeah, well, institutions have weakened, stars have gained power thanks to social media. If Taylor Swift and some other big musical stars got behind another ticketing service,

that would be the biggest threat to Live Nation there is. So today, those Live Nation executives are probably patting the... themselves on the backs for surviving a grilling by angry senators. Because Ticketmaster isn't afraid of senators. No, it's not. They're afraid of Taylor Swift. For our second story, Amazon just launched a shocking news subscription. Get this.

$5 gets you as many drugs as you want. Basically free pills. Honestly, I don't even feel comfortable saying that thing. Basically, free pills is how Amazon hooks us before they book us. It's all you can eat buffet of ibuprofen. Yeti's Amazon announced yesterday, they are doubling down on one thing, healthcare. Honestly, Amazon looks less like e-commerce and more just like a doctor these days. We're checking the medical history.

Amazon acquired pill pack in 2018. They launched their own telehealth service in 2020. Keep going, Jack. Last year, they acquired something you're a member of, Nick, and I used to be a member of. One medical, primary care. It's not a doctor office. It's a club. And Amazon has a wearable.

We all forgot about. I forgot about that wearable. The halo wrist thing. It lets Alexa track your like high blood pressure. Alexa's like cough twice. And this is because Dr. Bezos knows there is one thing you'll reliably spend money on. Your body. But at the same time, there's one thing you wish you could spend less money on.

The health care for your body. Which leads to yesterday's news. Amazon launched RX pass. RX pass. RX because for some reason that's the abbreviation of pharmacy. It feels like someone's going to send it a fact of the day about that. So for $5 a month, you get an unlimited number of prescription generic drugs. That's $5 a month prices on top of your prime membership, but it includes 50 generic drugs.

Now, Nick and I had to look twice at this one. We did. Not $5 a month plus the price of the drugs. We sat down, stood up, and laid down again. It's $5 a month for as many prescriptions as you need. So, Bessies, if you have a headache or an allergy or acid reflux or anxiety or asthma, Actually, if you have all of those combined, you can get a prescription generics for all five for $5. Just $5 a month.

Not $25. Yeah. Five bucks a month for five prescription medications. Again, we don't even feel comfortable saying that this is a thing. And we jumped in T-Boy style to who this is going to impact. And what are the numbers, Jack? 150 million Americans take at least one of the medications that this subscription provides. Let's sprinkle a little context on here.

this prescription, subscription covers half of the United States population. It would be useful for at least half of the Americans. But here's like the one thing, Jack and I keep wondering about it. 150 million Americans. Yeah. That's how many already use prime. So is this really about getting new customers? Maybe it's about getting old customers who aren't prime members.

Maybe it's about our takeaway, Jack. I don't want to interrupt you over there, but it felt like a takeaway moment. Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Amazon? This is your classic case of hook them and book them. Hook them and book them. Yet he's, we haven't seen a business plan to this thing, but we're pretty sure about one thing.

Amazon is not making money on this deal. $5 for an all-you-can-pop-a-fay of pills. Yeah, analysts agree. They're going to lose a lot of money on this thing. But if you're relying on Amazon for your recurring medical needs, that is valuable to Amazon. Maybe you think, hey, I'm getting monthly pill deliveries and they're working, and I'll get other subscriptions delivered by Amazon too.

Hey, Amazon keeps emailing me now about one medical. Maybe I'll use them for my primary care. So with RX pass, Amazon is hooking you with the low-cost prescription drugs. But then it books you with its other health care offerings, its other subscriptions, and the rest of prime. And it's all part of Amazon's long-term plan. Hook them. Yeah.

And then eventually book them. Now a word about our sponsor, Robin Hood. A lot of Yetis don't realize how much prep work goes into this. pod. We spend hours every morning jumping in T-Boy style to earnings reports, CEO tweets, breaking news headphones. Jack and I are toggling tabs like you toggled IM Convo's in 2004. Having eight tabs open can be stressful. You don't need that, especially when invest. Robin Hood offers it all in one app. Whether you want to trade options, ETFs, or stocks through Robin Hood Financial, or you want to buy some Bitcoin on Robin Hood Crypto. You can do it all on the Robin Hood app. If you're not investing in

Robin Hood yet, to get started, go to Robinhood.com slash T-boy and choose your free stock. That's robinood.com slash T-B-O-Y. Limitations apply. Robin Hood Financial LLC, member S-I-P-C, all investments involved for it. By the way, this podcast is not owned or part of Robin Hood. We are not employees of Robin Hood. For our third and final story, even though Jack just arrived in San Francisco and didn't bring me any white chocolate, felt like that was a pretty easy layup, Jack.

I am in the doghouse in this relationship, aren't I? I had popcorn waiting for you, and then I'm empty-handed as I receive you. I get no credit for the birthday balloons? No, you get full credit for birthday balloons. You get full credit forever for those birthday balloons. That was this week. That was an amazing week. That was an amazing balloon.

Yeties for our third and final story. Brazil and Argentina are planning the ultimate financial wedding right now, a joint currency. We love currency weddings. We love currency weddings. But we're not sure these two are right for each other. Yeah, we should talk about that. But first, some Latin. Please, Jack.

E pluribus unum. E pluribus unum. Those Latin words are the foundation of our dollar dollar bills, y'all. Out of many, one. Yeah, because the United States, we aren't just a country. If you think about it, the United States is actually a great currency marriage. In this currency union, all 50 states use and share the same currency. Well, Europe pulled off a more complicated version of that currency wedding.

In Europe, they got 20 separate countries. to share the Europe. That's impressive. Which leads to the big news. Brazil and Argentina just announced this week they want their own currency wedding too. Now, this new currency couple will not be called Brandelina, but apparently they do want to call the currency the sir. Brazil and Argentina's presidents would call this the sir, and it would eventually become the shared currency of all Latin America.

That's right, Yetis. They would be inviting other Latin American nations to join in this marriage of currencies too? It's an open relationship down there, Nick. No judgments. We're totally cool with it. In the meantime, yeah, here's what we found fascinating about this story. If Brazil and Argentina pull it off, the economic benefits of a single market would be huge. First, trade. Yes.

Trade. Firms could trade across borders and not worry about foreign exchange rates. For example, prices on Brazilian Kashasa could fall for Argentinians because they cut the foreign exchange fees. And the prices of Argentine beef could fall for Brazilians because there's no foreign exchange fees to worry about. Oh, and it's not just that. Foreign investment in South America. That could surge if they get a currency marriage. The international community sees strength in numbers in South America. Oh, then let's talk about the peace, Jack. Peace. Peace. Beautiful peace. shared currency strength and ties among its diverse users. Just look at Europe. Big fans of peace.

But there's one catch to currency marriages. There is one catch that Jack and I should mention. What is it, Jack? Between this two proposed couple, they don't even speak the same language. Did we just stand up and say, we object to this union check? We're not forever holding our peace, Nick. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies who we love down in Brazil and Argentina? They're neighbors, but we're not sure they're right for each other. So Yeties, Wall Street gave no reaction to this news because they don't think it's going to happen. Nick and I look at these two countries and opposites attract.

We love the countries. But these two countries made. be a little too opposite economically. Yeah, because for one, Brazil is on a totally different economic level than Argentina. Argentina has got a bad history of inflation and financial crises that could be a red flag for Brazil. Second, several times over decades, they've talked about this joint currency relationship idea, but nothing's happened. Yeah, if there was a dating app for currency hookups, these two would be labeled flakey. And honestly, if it does happen, it would take decades of political and institutional preparation. Creating a joint currency is not as easy as like going to your bank and opening

a joint bank account. So the way we see it, creating the euro of South America, that would yield huge economic benefits. Even though these two are neighbors, we're not sure they're right for each other. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us over there? And let me know where you want to go to dinner tonight. Rat house. I'm getting that dinner kebab. You're thinking schnitzel, aren't you? In the shadow of the Golden Gate Bridge, a German-themed bicycle-loving restaurant with Kulch? Come on. It's not a restaurant. It's an experience.

Yet his ticket master survived its public shaming from the U.S. Senate yesterday. Ticketmaster's greatest threat isn't the government. It's T. Swift. For our second story, Amazon just announced a $5 a month unlimited generic drug subscription. Amazon's always done this. Here's the deal. Hook them and then book them. In our third and final story, the presidents of Brazil and Argentina

announced plans for shared currency. They're neighbors, but when it comes to currencies, Wall Street's just not sure they're right for each other. They object. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Nick Losicero from Queens, New York. This one's wild. Lemons aren't natural.

Yeah, get this. Lemons are actually the first man-made fruit. This is wild. 4,000 years ago in East Asia, people began cross-breeding fruit to create new fruits. And the lemon, the basic lemon was among the first to do this. It's actually a hybrid of an orange and a citron. I know what you're thinking.

What's a citron? We googled it. It's a shriveled, old, uglier version of a lemon. We wish we hadn't Googled it. So life doesn't actually give you lemons at all. No. Even if you're making lemonade out of it. In fact, you could say people give you lemons.

People give you lemons. Yeties, you look fantastic today. Jack, fantastic to have you here. I know you got Spetzel on the mic. Get on over here and give me a thing on. You got Schnitzel and Sourcrat on the Monday. You're getting a bear out. We'll see you tomorrow.

And before we go, happy birthday to Yeti Lauren in Agua Dolce, California, just outside Los Angeles. And happy birthday to Jake Tan in Castro Valley, California. And Christian Speer Schneider, happy birthday in Green Bay, Wisconsin. And shout out to me for the German Shepherd who love celebrating Christ's birthday. Ladies, if you want a shout-out on this pod, all you got to do is fill out the form that we put in every episode description. There's a link right in this episode, fill it out. You get your shout-out. We'll get you that shout-out. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-boy.

Celebrate the wins. This is Jack. I own stock of Amazon and Netflix, and Nick and I both own stock of Robin Hood. We both have some U.S. dollars. Now, a word about our sponsor, Robin Hood. A lot of you listen to our show while you're driving. Two hands on the wheel. at 10 and 2. You might be cruising, Chris, no rush, stay in the right lane. Or you might be doll lane from Duncan, dotting from lane to lane. And there are different drivers on the road.

They're different investors too. Maybe you're cruising down the long-term lane with stock investing, or maybe you're a more advanced full-speed trader. Well, the Robin Hood app helps put you in the driver seat wherever you're at in your investing journey. If you're not investing on Robin Hood yet, to get started, go to robin hood.com slash T-Boy and choose your free stock. That's Robinhood.com slash T-B-O-Y. Limitations apply. Robin to Financial LLC, member SIPC, all investments involve risk. By the way, this podcast is not owned by or part of Robin Hood, and we are not employees of Robinhood.

Great, great, great, great, great. What a show. What a show. It's such a satisfied feeling. It's an incredible feeling this performance. What a freaking amazing. It's a great feeling. It's so satisfying.

Can you think of a game? Yeah. Can you think of an athlete? I guess an athlete. It's like we get to win. It's like we get to win a game every day. Professional athletes have this feeling. Every day we feel like we win.

Yeah, except professional athletes. like to lose, you're right. They lose. Physically, we're in the best shape of our lives.