Most of these changes are welcome. The Swashbuckler change feels weird since it removes some strategy. Joker positioning is actually important and fun, so removing effects that enforce that mechanic is a little sad for me.
Guaranteeing a joker booster pack in the first store is a very necessary change since RNG on even getting a joker has screwed more than one run for me, but at the same time it almost feels like a required purchase which indicates some sort of design flaw.
I may be misunderstanding how it all works, but the venues choose the ticket service, not the artists.