Ticketmaster must be stopped

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

I have never met a single person who doesn’t like going to concerts. However, as ticket prices drastically increase, especially for more popular artists, attending concerts is becoming increasingly inaccessible to the public. This leap in cost can be majorly attributed to one specific ticket sale and event marketing platform: Ticketmaster.

Founded in 1976, Ticketmaster is by far the oldest and largest e-ticket provider. According to CSNBC, since Ticketmaster merged with Live Nation in 2010, they now control an estimated 70 percent of the ticketing and live venues event market. More often than not, when you’re buying a concert ticket, it’s through Ticketmaster or one of its subsidiaries.

Recently, people have been increasingly noticing Ticketmaster’s penchant for placing sizable fees alongside already expensive concert tickets, making the overall price unreasonably costly. While recent discussions concerning Ticketmaster have increased in frequency after scandals surrounding ticket pricing, sales and fees for prominent artists, this isn’t a new issue. Ticketmaster’s greed is decades old.

In 1994, according to Rolling Stone, Pearl Jam claimed that Ticketmaster abused its marketplace dominance after scooping up its competitors by collecting sky-high service fees and signing exclusive deals with major concert venues, leaving consumers and artists with no other alternative. With encouragement from Justice Department officials, the band filed an antitrust complaint, leading to a federal investigation. 

The issue stemmed from the band aiming to charge $18 per ticket with a $1.80 fee; Ticketmaster, however, was used to charging double, or even triple, that amount. The band then attempted to only play at venues that did not use Ticketmaster but soon learned that these venues were often non-traditional, like the University of Montana, so they ultimately gave up in 1998 and resorted to using Ticketmaster once more. Although Ticketmaster remained unpunished, this complaint sparked a discussion about ticket pricing in the concert industry. 

Ticketmaster’s price gouging has only worsened since then, as they use dynamic pricing, which alters ticket pricing according to demand. So, the more people who want the ticket or are waiting in line to buy one, the higher the price of that ticket will be. This tactic was shown very prominently during Bruce Springsteen’s 2022 tour, in which, according to NPR, some of the tickets were upward of thousands of dollars each.

While tickets were on sale for her Eras Tour earlier this year, Taylor Swift fans faced Ticketmaster pricing and purchasing complications as well. During the presale, Ticketmaster’s system was overwhelmed by demand. On top of bots flooding the site to buy tickets for resale, fans waited hours for a chance to buy a ticket, prices were steep and some customers – even after finally being able to purchase a ticket – did not receive one. 

“The high fees, site disruptions and cancellations that customers experienced shows how Ticketmaster’s dominant market position means the company does not face any pressure to continually innovate and improve,” commented Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar on the fiasco. And according to BBC, Taylor Swift herself said it was “excruciating” to watch fans struggling to get tickets, as she had been assured Ticketmaster could handle the demand. Months later, Ticketmaster apologized for the “terrible consumer experience,” but based on their continued conduct when selling tickets, they were not and are not sorry. 

In early March, The Cure announced they were going on tour, pledging to make tickets as low as $20 to remain affordable for fans. Despite this, according to CBS, after fans added up the costs of Ticketmaster’s facility charges, service and order processing fees, many tickets were going for double their base price, the fees alone being equally as expensive as the tickets. Frontman of The Cure Robert Smith tweeted that he was “sickened” by the price gouging, claiming that the artist has no way to limit fees, which dispels Ticketmaster’s claim that the artist chooses every aspect of the price.

Ultimately, Ticketmaster, according to another tweet from Smith, “agreed with us that many of the fees being charged were unduly high,” and that as “a gesture of goodwill,” a refund of $10 would be offered to buyers with a “verified fan account.”

Ticketmaster forces artists and fans alike to go through them for the majority of concerts, only increasing their power. Ticketmaster’s continued monopoly sets a dangerous precedent for the live music industry. It is unclear whether Ticketmaster will ever have to change their ridiculous ways, but hopefully, as public outrage grows and more artists speak up, Ticketmaster will finally, after decades, be forced to listen.