The release of Taylor Swift’s new album Midnights in October 2022 was met with huge excitement from her massive fanbase. However, when pre-sale tickets for her upcoming Eras Tour went on sale in November through Ticketmaster, there were major issues that left many fans frustrated and unable to get tickets.
What happened with the Ticketmaster pre-sale?
Ticketmaster was the exclusive ticket sales platform for Taylor Swift’s upcoming tour. They held pre-sales on November 15th and 16th for fans who had received special codes through Swift’s fan club or who had purchased her album Midnights from her website.
However, Ticketmaster appeared completely unprepared for the massive demand. Their website and apps crashed repeatedly under the heavy traffic. Wait times stretched into hours, codes expired before fans could use them, and many were booted out of the queue and forced to start over. Even fans who were able to select seats said tickets would disappear from their carts before they could complete checkout.
Ticketmaster initially blamed the issues on bots and scalpers trying to scoop up tickets. However, it quickly became clear their systems were simply overwhelmed by the number of real fans trying to purchase. Taylor Swift has one of the largest fanbases in music, and Ticketmaster drastically underestimated the demand.
How did Ticketmaster respond?
Ticketmaster issued several statements as the pre-sale issues dragged on over multiple days. They claimed over 3.5 million people pre-registered for the Verified Fan sale, the largest registration in history. This unprecedented demand “combined with staggering number of bot attacks as well as fans who didn’t have invite codes” caused the tech issues.
Many angry fans responded that Ticketmaster should have been prepared for Swift’s massive popularity. The company had months to plan for this pre-sale, and fans felt they severely underdelivered.
Ticketmaster later announced that due to “extraordinarily high demands on ticketing systems and insufficient remaining ticket inventory” they were canceling the general public sale scheduled for November 18th. This left millions of Swift fans completely unable to purchase tickets.
What was Taylor Swift’s response?
Taylor Swift herself addressed the fiasco in an Instagram story, writing “It goes without saying that I’m extremely protective of my fans.” She said it was “excruciating” for her to watch mistakes happen without recourse, and that she was hoping to provide more opportunities for fans to get tickets in the future.
Many fans blamed Ticketmaster, not Swift, for the chaos. However, some were still upset that she partnered with a company that was clearly unprepared to handle demand. Swift plans to take her frustrations over the process out on those responsible through “relentless effort, steadfast fixation on details, and care for every individual in my audience.”
Why were so many tickets unavailable or extremely expensive?
Fans were outraged to see Ticketmaster list thousands of resale tickets at huge markups within minutes of the pre-sales beginning. Seats with a face value of $49 were going for $1000 or more from resellers.
Ticketmaster claimed over 2 million tickets were sold on November 15th, the first pre-sale date alone. However, the number of tickets that seemed to disappear instantly has led to accusations of Ticketmaster holding back inventory. There are also concerns about how many tickets were directed to VIP packages, fan club members, and credit card purchasers – limiting availability for the general public.
The enormous demand meant any released tickets were instantly scooped up. Ticketmaster’s price adjustment algorithms likely raised prices in response. The resale market was also flooded with fans trying to cash in on the massive demand.
The end result was little to no tickets being available for the average fans at normal prices. Those who wanted to attend were looking at paying hundreds or thousands of dollars above face value to get in.
Location | Original Price Range | Current Resale Prices |
---|---|---|
Los Angeles | $49-$449 | $250-$12,000+ |
Arlington, TX | $49-$449 | $175-$10,000+ |
Tampa, FL | $49-$449 | $200-$5,000+ |
Is Ticketmaster a monopoly?
Ticketmaster sells primary tickets for the large majority of major concert tours and events. According to some estimates, they control over 70% of the primary event ticket market. They are also linked to many large resellers and secondary markets.
This lack of competition allowed Ticketmaster to sell huge amounts of tickets through pre-sales, VIP packages, and holds for its own resale market. Critics claim their monopoly allowed them to redirect far more tickets than necessary, deliberately limiting general public availability to drive up prices.
However, Ticketmaster maintains that they don’t set prices or ticket allocation. The events, teams, and artists make those decisions. Ticketmaster also claims the market is “fiercely competitive”, though few other options exist for large events.
The controversy has renewed calls for Ticketmaster to be broken up or regulated as an illegal monopoly. Several politicians have gotten involved, asking for antitrust investigations. A handful of anti-trust lawsuits have also been filed over Ticketmaster’s practices.
Could anything have prevented this?
Given Ticketmaster’s clear lack of preparation, no single change could have avoided all the issues. However, there are steps that might have reduced the impacts on fans:
- More tour dates at larger venues – Greater supply to meet demand
- Staggered sales dates over a longer period – Avoid crushing site traffic on one day
- Limits per customer – Reduce bulk purchases by resellers
- No dynamic pricing or market-based pricing – Keep costs predictable
- Better queue system – Eliminate wait time issues and crashing
- Captcha system – Reduce benefits for bots
Greater competition in the primary ticket market could also motivate more fan-friendly policies. Though Ticketmaster maintains Swift had final say over all policies for her tour.
Will there be any other chances to get Taylor Swift tickets?
As of now, Ticketmaster has not announced any new sales dates or opportunities. There is speculation Swift’s team may add more shows in high-demand areas like Los Angeles to increase supply. She could also potentially release last-minute tickets for sale as production needs are finalized.
For now, fans will have to try their luck on resale sites or hold out hope for any new announcements. StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek and other resellers have huge markups currently, but prices often drop as events get closer.
There is also possibility of Ticketmaster releasing extra tickets if they identify any purchases made specifically for resale. But the odds of significant numbers becoming available again are low.
Any future announcements will likely be posted on Taylor Swift’s social media or sent via email to her fan club. Major news outlets will also report any updates on further ticket sales.
What can be learned from this mess?
The Swift ticket fiasco provides some key lessons:
- Artists with massive fanbases need more show dates in larger venues to supply enough tickets.
- Leading ticket sellers should prepare robust websites and sales plans for high-demand events.
- Ticket holds for presales, fan clubs etc should be capped to ensure sufficient general public availability.
- Price gouging through “platinum” tickets or dynamic pricing rubs fans the wrong way.
- Lack of regulation around ticket resales enables huge markups.
- Monopolies in ticketing markets drive up costs and limit options for fans.
There are no easy answers that can please every stakeholder. But this fiasco shows the live event ticketing system needs better safeguards for consumers.
Conclusion
Taylor Swift’s dedicated fanbase overwhelmed Ticketmaster, revealing just how poorly the company was prepared. Their lack of competition and questionable policies around presales and pricing meant millions were left fruitlessly waiting for tickets.
Major reform is needed in how large events are ticketed. Without better consumer protections, fans will continue being the losers when their favorite acts come to town.
Swifties around the globe share in frustration over this debacle. But the superstar herself now also has major incentive to push for changes that help get her music into her fans’ hands. If any artist can drive the effort for live entertainment ticketing reform, it’s Taylor Swift.