Ticketmaster is the largest primary ticket outlet in the United States. When tickets for concerts, sports events, and other live entertainment go on sale, Ticketmaster is usually the official seller. But what happens when those initial tickets sell out and fans want to buy tickets on the secondary market from resellers? Does Ticketmaster get a cut of those resold tickets too?
Ticketmaster’s Official Resale Platform
In 2008, Ticketmaster launched their own ticket resale platform to compete with secondary marketplaces like StubHub. This enabled fans to resell and buy tickets through Ticketmaster directly. Ticketmaster gets a percentage of revenue from every ticket resold through their platform.
Initially, Ticketmaster’s resale operations accounted for a very small portion of their overall business. But it has grown tremendously over the past decade. In 2021, Ticketmaster’s gross transaction value from resale hit $2 billion, representing a whopping 28% year-over-year growth.
Resale tickets have become a massive part of Ticketmaster’s business model. Today, they are the second largest ticket reseller behind StubHub.
What Does Ticketmaster Charge Sellers?
When a fan resells a ticket on Ticketmaster’s resale platform, the company charges fees to both the buyer and the seller. This is how Ticketmaster generates revenue from secondary market sales.
For sellers, Ticketmaster charges a 10% transaction fee for every ticket resold through their system. So if you sell a $100 ticket, you would pay Ticketmaster a $10 fee and receive $90 in your account.
In addition, there is a 15% “buyer’s premium” added to the final resale price that the buyer pays. This premium goes entirely to Ticketmaster.
For example:
- Original ticket price: $100
- Seller sets resale price: $120
- 15% buyer’s premium is added, raising the final sale price to $138
- Seller pays 10% transaction fee of $12
- Seller receives the original $120 resale price less the $12 fee, equaling $108
- Ticketmaster receives the $12 transaction fee, plus the $18 buyer’s premium, totaling $30
In this scenario, Ticketmaster’s fees amount to nearly 25% of the final resale price paid by the buyer. Of course, the specific fees can vary based on factors like high ticket demand for hot events.
Seller Fees
| Fee Type | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transaction Fee | 10% of resale price |
| Buyer’s Premium | 15% added to final resale price |
What Does Ticketmaster Charge Buyers?
In addition to the 15% buyer’s premium mentioned above, Ticketmaster also tacks on their usual ticket fees that they charge on primary sales. This often includes:
- A per ticket “order processing fee” ($6-$12 per ticket)
- A “delivery fee” for electronic or mail delivery ($4-$8 per order)
- Facility fees, tax, etc.
It’s not uncommon for fees to add 25-30% (or more) onto the base ticket price for the buyer. All those fees go directly into Ticketmaster’s pockets.
Buyer Fees
| Fee Type | Amount |
|---|---|
| Buyer’s Premium | 15% of resale price |
| Order Processing Fee | $6-$12 per ticket |
| Delivery Fee | $4-$8 per order |
| Facility Fee, Taxes, etc | Varies |
How Much are Other Resale Sites Charging?
Of course, Ticketmaster is not the only ticket resale game in town. Major secondary marketplaces like StubHub and Vivid Seats also charge significant fees to both buyers and sellers.
StubHub was the largest player in the resale market for many years. They tend to charge lower final fees than Ticketmaster, but exact pricing can vary greatly based on factors like ticket demand.
Here is a general overview of StubHub’s typical fee structure:
StubHub
| Seller Fees | |
|---|---|
| Transaction Fee | 10-15% of resale price |
| Buyer Fees | |
| Service Fee | 10-25% of ticket cost |
| Delivery Fee | $4.95 for electronic or mail |
Vivid Seats is another large secondary ticket market, sometimes offering lower service fees than StubHub in competitive situations.
Vivid Seats
| Seller Fees | |
|---|---|
| Transaction Fee | 10-20% of sale price |
| Buyer Fees | |
| Service Fee | 11-20% of ticket cost |
| Delivery Fee | $2.49 for electronic |
The examples above illustrate how Ticketmaster, StubHub and Vivid Seats all monetize ticket resales through fees charged to both buyers and sellers.
Does Ticketmaster Prohibit Resales?
In the past, Ticketmaster sought to prohibit ticket resales through restrictions written on the tickets themselves. But in recent years, they have not only embraced resales, but encourage ticket transferability.
Ticketmaster rebranded their resale division as Ticketmaster Marketplace in 2018. This was accompanied by messaging that “fans can sell tickets whenever they want.”
The company now acts as a willing conduit between buyers and sellers in the secondary market that they once tried to prevent. As the largest primary seller, Ticketmaster is able to generate enormous revenue from resales too.
Does Ticketmaster Have Exclusive Resale Rights?
Ticketmaster frequently negotiates clauses with concert venues and promoters giving them exclusive rights to ticket resales. This shuts out competitors like StubHub.
Many major artists and live events only allow ticket resales through Ticketmaster. Some examples include Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden, New York Rangers games, and major festivals like Lollapalooza.
This exclusivity allows Ticketmaster to maximize resale revenue. They face no outside competition for fees when a particular event can only be resold on their platform.
Is Ticketmaster a Monopoly?
Ticketmaster sells primary tickets for 70 of the top 100 arenas in the US and has exclusive ticket partnerships with most major venues. This dominating market position in primary sales gives them outsized control over the secondary market too.
Critics argue that Ticketmaster’s vast power and lack of competition enables them to levy extremely high fees and costs. There have been numerous lawsuits and legal actions taken against Ticketmaster over anti-competitive practices and abuse of market power.
However, thus far Ticketmaster has remained the dominant player in the live event ticketing space. Their exclusive deals across primary and secondary sales have successfully shut out rivals.
Conclusion
Ticketmaster can bring in big revenue through fees charged to both buyers and sellers when tickets are resold on their platform. Their secondary marketplace is a massive and fast-growing part of their business.
As the largest primary ticket seller with exclusive deals in place, Ticketmaster has a huge advantage over competitors when it comes to the secondary market too. They frequently negotiate exclusive rights on ticket resales for major concerts, sports, and other live entertainment events.
While fans may dislike the high fees, Ticketmaster has successfully leveraged their dominant position to maximize revenue from both primary and secondary ticket sales.