In November 2022, Ticketmaster’s handling of ticket sales for Taylor Swift’s upcoming Eras tour caused major issues for fans trying to purchase tickets. The high demand for Taylor Swift tickets, combined with website glitches and long wait times, led to a public outcry over Ticketmaster’s sales process.
What caused the Ticketmaster issues for Taylor Swift’s tour?
There were a few key factors that led to the problems with Ticketmaster and Taylor Swift’s Eras tour tickets:
- Extremely high demand – Taylor Swift has millions of fans worldwide who were all vying to get tickets for her first tour in 5 years.
- Limited tour dates – The Eras tour only includes 52 shows in the US, so tickets were capped at lower quantities.
- Presales issues – Multiple presales for different groups like Ticketmaster Verified Fans overloaded the system.
- Bots and scalpers – Bots and scalpers trying to scoop up tickets added more strain to the Ticketmaster website and apps.
- Site glitches – Unable to handle the traffic, Ticketmaster’s site and apps began glitching and crashing during presales.
Essentially, Ticketmaster underestimated the massive demand for Taylor Swift’s tour and did not prepare adequately for the sheer amount of fans trying to purchase tickets all at once. The system became overloaded and failed to handle the traffic.
How did Ticketmaster handle the issues?
As the presales began on November 15, 2022, Ticketmaster started experiencing significant glitches and system slowdowns. Wait times could be several hours just to access the website or app. Ticketmaster halted and postponed some presale events due to the technical problems.
Over 1.5 million fans reportedly had already secured tickets. However, millions more were left empty-handed and frustrated. On November 17th, Ticketmaster officially announced that the general public onsale scheduled for November 18th was canceled due to “extraordinarily high demands on ticketing systems and insufficient remaining ticket inventory.”
Ticketmaster received immense criticism over how they handled the ticketing issues. Fans felt they lacked communication and transparency around the problems. Many customers also complained about Ticketmaster’s fees which inflated costs:
- Service fees could add up to 20-30% to base ticket prices.
- Dynamic pricing raised prices as demand surged.
- VIP packages with perks had premium costs.
Ticketmaster defended their policies and said the tour could have sold out hundreds of stadiums based on interest. But many saw it as a failure by Ticketmaster to find a fair way to get tickets into real fans’ hands.
How did Taylor Swift respond to the Ticketmaster fiasco?
Taylor Swift herself did not immediately comment very much on the initial Ticketmaster issues as they were unfolding in November 2022. She was likely trying to assess the situation herself.
However, on November 18th after the general onsale cancellation, she posted a statement on her Instagram Stories. She expressed her anger and frustration over the handling of ticket sales, saying:
“It’s really difficult for me to trust an outside entity with these relationships and loyalties, and excruciating for me to just watch mistakes happen with no recourse.”
She sympathized with disappointed fans and vowed to improve the situation moving forward:
“I’m not going to make excuses for anyone because we asked them, multiple times, if they could handle this kind of demand and we were assured they could.”
Based on Swift’s statement, it seems she and her team had sought assurances from Ticketmaster that they could handle the demand. When major issues arose that prevented fans getting tickets, Swift felt betrayed by Ticketmaster which compromised her fan relationships.
How were fans, regulators, and politicians responding?
The backlash against Ticketmaster was severe from Swift’s loyal followers and the general public. Fans were outraged over presale code issues, long wait times, website crashes and unreliable ticket quantity displays. Ticketmaster offered some presale tickets to Swift’s official fan club, but many reported problems accessing the presale despite having prepaid memberships.
Regulators also took notice of the anti-consumer practices on display. Members of the US Congress called for investigation and reform of Ticketmaster. Senator Amy Klobuchar who leads the antitrust subcommittee, wrote an open letter stating:
“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.”
Senator Richard Blumenthal also remarked that the Department of Justice should investigate Ticketmaster for potential antitrust violations.
Several states’ attorney generals also opened investigations into Ticketmaster’s service fees and sales practices following the Swift tour debacle.
What is Taylor Swift’s history with Ticketmaster?
Taylor Swift has had a long partnership with Ticketmaster throughout her career. They exclusively sold tickets for her Reputation stadium tour in 2018, which broke Ticketmaster’s all-time record for most tickets sold in a single day. Over 2 million were sold for Swift’s North American dates.
However, Swift has bumped heads with Ticketmaster before over their fees. On her 1989 World Tour in 2015, Swift wrote an open letter to Apple Music saying:
“I’m sure you are aware that Apple Music will not be paying writers, producers, or artists for those three months…We don’t ask you for free iPhones. Please don’t ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation.”
Similarly in 2018, Swift called out Ticketmaster’s fees in an Instagram post: “I’m not willing to put my fans through additional financial strain just to put on a show.” Some fees were lowered after her statements.
While Swift has an exclusive deal with Ticketmaster for her tours, she’s shown she will publicly criticize their practices on behalf of her fans. The Eras tour presale collapse seems to mark a turning point where Swift strongly questioned whether to trust Ticketmaster moving forward.
Will Ticketmaster make changes after the backlash?
Following the presale disaster, Ticketmaster announced they will work to improve their systems and fan experience. They indicated interest in exploring new technologies like Verified Fan to cut down on bots.
Some other potential changes Ticketmaster could institute include:
- Stronger site capacity to handle heavy traffic.
- Better queue systems to facilitate orderly purchasing.
- Limiting presales or staggering them over more days.
- More transparency on available ticket quantities and pricing.
- Cracking down on scalpers reselling tickets.
However, major transformations seem unlikely in the near future. Ticketmaster still dominates the primary ticket sales market with minimal competition. And the company brings in massive revenues through service fees – over $1 billion in 2021 alone. They have little incentive to overhaul systems that benefit their bottom line.
Some analysts suspect instead Ticketmaster may just weather the PR crisis until public anger blows over. Without meaningful reforms, similar issues around high-demand events seem destined to continue occurring.
Could Taylor Swift potentially leave Ticketmaster?
Based on Swift’s harsh words, she appears extremely dissatisfied with how Ticketmaster mishandled her tour ticket sales. Her trust has likely been broken after the presale fiasco.
Could this prompt Swift to leave Ticketmaster and use another ticketing company? It’s possible, but could prove challenging:
- Ticketmaster has exclusive or long-term deals with many major venues.
- Rival ticketing companies may lack ability to handle Swift’s massive fan demand.
- If Swift controls sales herself, it’s costly and complex to develop needed technology.
Additionally, Ticketmaster has weathered artist defections before. Pearl Jam unsuccessfully tried to operate their own ticketing in the 90s bypassing Ticketmaster. And Bruce Springsteen similarly couldn’t tour arenas in 2010 using only Ticketmaster’s rival TicketsNow.
Realistically, Ticketmaster still holds huge power given their entrenched industry dominance. But the PR damage inflicted on Ticketmaster from the Swift tour mishap was monumental. If any artist has the leverage to lead serious ticketing industry reform, it may just be a global superstar like Taylor Swift.
Could Ticketmaster face legal action or fines?
No major lawsuits have been filed yet against Ticketmaster following the Taylor Swift presale issues. Some legal experts think individuals or groups of fans could potentially bring class action lawsuits centered around:
- Unfair pricing practices
- Misleading advertisements or statements
- Inadequate presale access
- Poor handling of consumers’ money
However, Ticketmaster’s terms of use and disclaimers may make lawsuits challenging. Fans agree to mandatory arbitration which moves cases out of court. And Ticketmaster’s liability language warns ticketing is complex and glitches can occur.
In terms of government fines or penalties, no major regulatory moves have occurred yet. But federal and state investigations have just begun. If evidence of intentional deception, antitrust violations or egregious negligence emerges, fines could be on the table.
Some analysts think the bad PR of the Swift fiasco alone was damaging enough to incentivize Ticketmaster improvements. But if meaningful reforms don’t materialize, legal and regulatory action may gain momentum over the company’s sales practices.
Conclusion
The Taylor Swift Ticketmaster debacle exposed some of the deep flaws embedded in the live event ticketing industry. Mass discontent led by Swift herself makes this a pivotal moment to evaluate reforms.
It remains unclear how drastically either Ticketmaster or Swift will shift approaches moving forward. But the broken trust and ill-will lingering from fans’ ticket buying experience underscores that meaningful changes are needed.
Swift has built her career on championing fans. Her willingness to publicly hold Ticketmaster’s feet to the fire reflects her commitment to that relationship. However, Twisted contractual web the company has woven still may limit her options. Transforming a multi-billion dollar industry with limited competition is an immense challenge.
For now, Swift still has concerts to play and fans eager to see their idol perform live. Yet wherever her Eras Tour travels, the Ticketmaster debacle will echo as a cautionary warning of what happens when fan devotion meets corporate greed.
