International Business Research; Vol. 7, No. 11; 2014 ISSN 1913-9004 E-ISSN 1913-9012 Published by Canadian Center of Science and Education Analysis of U2‘s Concert Performance Location Choice: Application of an Adapted Gravity Model Joel I. Deichmann1 1 Global Studies Department, Bentley University, Waltham, Massachusetts, USA Correspondence: Joel I. Deichmann, Global Studies Department, Bentley University, Waltham, Massachusetts, USA. E-mail:
[email protected] Received: September 9, 2014 Accepted: October 10, 2014 Online Published: October 25, 2014 doi:10.5539/ibr.v7n11p190 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/ibr.v7n11p190 Abstract The rock band U2, based in Dublin, Ireland, has become one of the most successful touring acts in the history of live music. Treating U2 as a global business enterprise, this paper introduces a gravity approach to understanding performance location selection. A brief descriptive analysis of the band‘s tour geography is followed by the presentation of results from linear regression models that evaluate the choice of countries for live performances. Over 33 years, U2 played more than one thousand six hundred concerts at locations in 40 countries. Having completed several world tours with multiple legs, U2 has developed a clear geographical circuit, performing mainly in Europe, North America, and Oceania. Findings from the models indicate that the band is attracted primarily by market size (presence of large urban areas) and market strength (income). In addition, the band‘s location choices appear to be governed by cultural proximity. Counter to expectations, neither geographical distance nor country risk appear to play a significant role in the selection of tour destinations, especially in the most recent U2360 tour of 2009–2011.