What happened to Zach Bryan and Ticketmaster?

In October 2022, rising country music star Zach Bryan made headlines when he spoke out against Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing system. Bryan called out the company for excessively increasing ticket prices for his shows, sometimes up to 10 times the original cost. This sparked a conversation about the ethics of Ticketmaster’s pricing practices and the need for reform in the live events industry.

Who is Zach Bryan?

Zach Bryan is an American country music singer-songwriter from Oklahoma. After building a following through Vine, YouTube and Soundcloud, Bryan released his debut album ‘DeAnn’ in 2019. His grassroots popularity led to a record deal with Warner Music Nashville in 2021. Bryan’s major label debut album, ‘American Heartbreak’, was released in May 2022 and became one of the top selling country albums of the year. Known for his raw, earnest songwriting and high-energy live shows, Bryan has earned critical acclaim and a passionate fanbase during his rapid rise to stardom.

What is dynamic pricing?

Dynamic pricing is a variable pricing strategy that allows companies like Ticketmaster to adjust ticket prices in real-time based on demand. Using advanced data analytics, dynamic pricing aims to maximize revenue by charging higher prices when demand is highest for an event. Also known as surge pricing, the goal is to capture greater profit during peak sales periods while also ensuring sell-outs. Dynamic pricing has become increasingly common across live entertainment, travel, retail, and other industries.

The Controversy

In October 2022, Zach Bryan took to social media to address the high ticket prices for his upcoming tour dates, placing blame directly on Ticketmaster:

“The scalpers and the resellers have gotten way out of hand. When I started this tour I was expressly told my ticket prices would be $40-$60… not $500-$1200 like you see on all resale sites.”

“Ticketmaster what the f— man. I didn’t raise my ticket prices at all for this tour. The scalpers literally double and triple ticket prices and hold the tickets hostage from actual fans.”

“I have no say in ticket pricing. I just simply play the game. It’s taken everything in my power just to keep my own ticket prices at 40 and 50 dollar tickets.”

Bryan expressed frustration that high reseller prices meant fans were getting priced out. He vowed to keep fighting to make tickets affordable.

How did Ticketmaster respond?

In response to the backlash, Ticketmaster released a statement defending their pricing model:

“Artists control their own ticket prices. Like many other artists on Ticketmaster, Zach Bryan chose dynamic pricing when he went on sale. Dynamic pricing aims to price tickets closer to their fair value.”

“The goal is to make sure fans are getting a fair price rather than have tickets immediately go to the secondary market, which doesn’t protect fans. Even with dynamic pricing, all tickets for Zach’s shows are below market value for this high demand tour.”

Ticketmaster asserted the blame lied with scalpers and brokers reselling tickets, not their official prices. They doubled down that dynamic pricing better serves both artists and fans.

Examining the Root Causes

The conflict between Bryan and Ticketmaster shined a light on some of the key factors that enable high ticket prices:

Ticketmaster’s virtual monopoly

As the dominant primary ticket seller, Ticketmaster has enormous control over the industry. They set terms and fees that venues, artists, and fans have little power to negotiate. This lack of competition allows Ticketmaster to implement variable pricing models to maximize their own revenue. With no viable alternative, the live events industry has become reliant on Ticketmaster’s sales platform.

High ticket resale market

While Ticketmaster blamed scalpers and brokers, the reality is the secondary market thrives because primary prices are purposely set low. This motivates scalpers to quickly buy up tickets that they can resell for a profit. Dynamic pricing has been Ticketmaster’s response to compete with the secondary market.

High service fees

In addition to rising base ticket prices, Ticketmaster tacks on hefty fees that can add 30-40% to an order. These controversial fees include vague charges for services like “processing” and “convenience”. As a near-monopoly, Ticketmaster faces little pressure to reduce or justify these fees that increase costs for fans.

Artist dependence on touring

With declining album sales, touring has become the chief income stream for musicians in the streaming era. Dynamic pricing allows artists to capture higher prices from in-demand shows. For artists like Bryan playing arena and stadium tours, there are immense financial incentives to enable variable ticket pricing.

Impact on Fans

While industry giants like Ticketmaster and major artists reap big profits from dynamic pricing, the model threatens to alienate fans and make live music inaccessible:

Priced out of the market

When tickets frequently spike to hundreds of dollars, middle and working class fans get boxed out of the market. Music becomes a luxury product only affordable to affluent listeners. Many loyal fans can no longer justify the high costs of attending a beloved artist’s concert.

Lack of transparency

Dynamic pricing provides little transparency on how much tickets will cost upfront. Fans cannot accurately budget for shows when final prices fluctuate widely. This creates frustration and uncertainty that deters ticket buying.

Perceived unfairness

Customers routinely perceive variable pricing as unfair when they learn someone else paid much less or more for the same product or experience. This damages goodwill and erodes the fan’s desire to attend events.

Case Study: Swifties vs. Ticketmaster

The controversy around Bryan and Ticketmaster echoed a similar dynamic pricing debacle involving Taylor Swift tickets in November 2022.

When Swift announced her long-awaited Eras tour, Ticketmaster’s systems crashed under high demand. The company then released a limited number of tickets priced from $49 to $449. However, Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing raised prices for further ticket tranches released later:

• Capital One cardholder presale tickets peaked at $995
• Verified fan presale tickets reached up to $719
• General public onsale tickets started at $249 before increasing to $599

Swift herself had harsh words for Ticketmaster over the “excruciating” fiasco, saying there were “a multitude of reasons why people had such a hard time” trying to get tickets.

Like Bryan, Swift articulated that she was not responsible for setting prices so high. The episode became a flashpoint demonstrating Ticketmaster’s unchecked power to impose unpopular pricing on fans.

Fan reactions

Many Swift fans reacted angrily at being priced out by dynamic pricing. The hashtag #TixForTaylor trended as they complained of Ticketmaster’s “greed” and broken systems.

Some fans filed a lawsuit accusing Ticketmaster of antitcompetitive conduct and price-fixing. The Department of Justice has even opened an antitrust investigation into Live Nation Entertainment’s dominance of ticketing and live events.

The Future of Ticketing

The clashes involving Zach Bryan, Taylor Swift and Ticketmaster have drawn intense scrutiny towards Ticketmaster’s business practices. Some analysts predict these controversies could spark real change in the industry:

Pressure for government intervention

With Ticketmaster controlling 70% of primary ticket sales, calls are growing louder for lawmakers to intervene and increase competition. Possible actions range from probing antitrust violations to directly regulating ticket fees and pricing.

Fan revolts

If high ticket costs continue to shut out genuine fans, artists may witness boycotts, damage to their brands, and loss of loyalty from their supporter base. The risk of backlash creates incentives for artists to demand more control and restraint over pricing.

Rise of alternative platforms

New ticketing platforms like Dice, Eventbrite, AXS and SeatGeek are trying to disrupt Ticketmaster’s dominance by offering lower fees, transparent pricing, and direct artist-to-fan sales. If they can scale up, increased competition could force Ticketmaster to reform.

Direct-to-fan presales

Artists like Bryan and Swift have already been circumventing Ticketmaster by selling tickets directly through their fan clubs and email lists. This allows them to control inventory and pricing for their most loyal followers. More artists adopting this strategy reduces dependence on Ticketmaster.

Conclusion

The dynamic pricing model employed by Ticketmaster has enabled drastic inflation of ticket prices that squeezes fans and threatens the sustainability of live music. Scrutiny of these practices has cast Ticketmaster’s dominance in an unfavorable light. While the company defends variable pricing as protecting artists and fans, the reality appears to be maximizing profits at the expense of fair access.

The cases of Zach Bryan and Taylor Swift have become flashpoints demonstrating the need for reform. There are glimmers of hope that fan discontent could force action from lawmakers, spur alternative platforms, or pressure artists to take more control. However, with billions in revenue each year, Ticketmaster still holds immense influence over the live events ecosystem. The power dynamics, outdated policies, and lack of competition that enabled Ticketmaster’s reign will not be easily overcome. Ultimately, it may require government intervention or technology disruption to solve the ticketing crisis. Until then, the conflict between artists, fans, and ticket sellers seems destined for more turbulent chapters ahead.