Ticketmaster is one of the largest ticket sales and distribution companies in the world. When high-demand tickets go on sale, they often sell out very quickly as fans rush to purchase before they are gone. This has led some to wonder if Ticketmaster somehow holds tickets during the checkout process, preventing others from buying them until your purchase is complete.
How Ticketmaster’s Ticketing System Works
When an event goes on sale on Ticketmaster, all available tickets are immediately released for purchase. Ticketmaster does not actually withhold or “hold” tickets while customers go through the checkout process.
Instead, Ticketmaster utilizes a queue-based system to handle the high traffic and demand. Here’s how it works:
- All available tickets are released immediately when the sale starts.
- Customers join a virtual waiting room or queue when they try to access the sale.
- Ticketmaster will briefly pause new customers from joining the queue if it gets too long.
- Customers are let through the queue one by one when capacity becomes available.
- Once inside, customers can select and purchase tickets if they are still available.
So in summary, Ticketmaster does not hold tickets while you complete your purchase. The tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis as customers are allowed through the virtual queue.
Why Tickets Can Appear “Taken” During Checkout
If tickets seem to disappear from inventory while you are purchasing, there are a couple possible explanations:
- Other fans purchased those tickets while you were going through checkout, as the queue continues processing during this time.
- Ticketmaster’s inventory updates have a slight delay, so tickets may briefly still appear available just after they were purchased.
- Ticketmaster sometimes holds back a small number of tickets for fan club presales, artist allocations, etc. These are removed from the general inventory prior to the public on-sale.
The key point is that Ticketmaster does not put holds on tickets just for your session. The inventory is live and any tickets still showing as available can be purchased by other customers going through the queue.
Tips for Successfully Purchasing Tickets
Because Ticketmaster’s queue system essentially creates a virtual “waiting line,” here are some tips to improve your chances of getting tickets:
- Join the queue early – Ticketmaster will often open it 30-60 minutes before the stated start time.
- Avoid refreshing once in queue – This could lose your place or bump you to the back.
- Have an account – Being logged in makes the checkout process much smoother.
- Use fast payment options – Preload credit card or PayPal for the quickest checkout.
- Act quickly once inside – Have a game plan for which tickets you want.
While not foolproof, having a strategy and understanding how Ticketmaster’s system works can definitely help your chances. With very high demand events, there is unfortunately more competition than available tickets in many cases.
Are Other Ticket Sites Different?
Most major primary ticket sellers use similar queue-based systems to handle massive traffic spikes when big events go on sale. This includes ticket vendors like AXS, Altitude Tickets, Ticketfly and more. None of them deliberately hold inventory during checkout.
Secondary market resellers like StubHub or Vivid Seats operate differently, as fans re-sell tickets they have already purchased. Their inventory comes from speculative brokers or fans reselling extra tickets. On these sites, it is possible one customer could purchase the last of a particular ticket while another has it in their cart.
In general though, the technical ticketing process works similarly across most major platforms when it comes to high-demand on-sales. Tickets are not “held” but simply sell out rapidly as customers are processed through virtual queues.
Is There a Way to Get Tickets Held?
Unfortunately, Ticketmaster does not provide any type of ticket hold or layaway program. Tickets cannot be held or reserved for a specific customer during checkout.
The company has commented previously that their queues are designed to be equitable for all customers by making inventory available on a first-come, first-served basis. Any type of hold system could allow some users unfair early access to tickets.
However, here are some options that can mimic a “ticket hold” in specific scenarios:
- Season ticket holders sometimes get access to presales where tickets are held for them before general on-sale.
- Fan club members may have access to presales where tickets are reserved while they checkout.
- VIP packages that combine tickets with perks like meet & greets effectively reserve tickets since they are bundled products.
Outside of these special cases, there is no way to pause or hold ticket inventory during the standard on-sale process on Ticketmaster or other major ticketing platforms.
Is Ticketmaster’s System Fair?
Ticketmaster has received criticism over the years that its ticketing system is unfair and puts fans at a disadvantage. Some common complaints include:
- Bots and scalpers can buy up tickets quickly crowding out regular fans.
- Long queues, site crashes and errors make the system difficult to navigate.
- Lack of transparency around number of tickets available makes preparing difficult.
- Presales limit inventory left for the general public on-sale.
However, Ticketmaster argues that their queue system is designed for speed, reliability and equitable widespread access when demand far exceeds supply. They state they are continuously improving the process to make ticket buying as fair and easy as possible for consumers.
There are also third-party vendors like Queue-It that specialize just in queue solutions for ticket sales. Their technology is used by many ticketing platforms to handle the unique traffic demands when hot event tickets go on sale.
In summary, while not perfect, most industry experts agree that modern queue-based ticketing systems are likely the most practical solutions available today to facilitate fair access during high-traffic on-sales.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Ticketmaster does not deliberately hold or reserve tickets during the checkout process. When an event goes on sale, all tickets are immediately made available on a first-come, first-served basis as customers are allowed through virtual waiting rooms and queues.
If a ticket appears available, it can be purchased – there is no system that puts holds or layaways on tickets only for your session. However, it is possible for other customers to purchase inventory simultaneously if they are ahead of you in the queue.
While certainly frustrating for fans, Ticketmaster’s ticketing system is designed to provide fair widespread access when demand massively outweighs supply. There are also techniques like joining queues early that can give you a better experience and chance at getting the tickets you want.
