Ticketmaster, a major ticket sales and distribution company, has faced a number of accusations over its business practices throughout the years. Some of the main issues that have stirred up controversy for the company include accusations of exorbitant service fees, anti-competitive behavior, and collusion with scalpers.
Service Fees
One of the most common complaints about Ticketmaster is their service fees that get tacked onto ticket purchases. These fees can often add over 25% to the base ticket price. The fees go to Ticketmaster for providing ticketing services and range depending on the event. Some of the main fees include:
- Convenience fees – For the convenience of buying tickets online or over the phone
- Order processing fees – Charges for Ticketmaster processing the ticket order
- Facility fees – Charges that the venue collects for maintenance and upkeep
- Service fees – Ticketmaster’s charges for acting as a broker
Many customers have accused Ticketmaster of imposing excessive fees that seem disproportionate to the services rendered. There is also a lack of transparency around what the fees are for and why they vary so much between events. Critics argue the convenience fees are hard to justify in an era where most tickets are purchased online.
Why does Ticketmaster charge such high fees?
Ticketmaster defends its fees by saying they help pay for its ticketing platform and services. These include the website technology, customer service, and security measures required to operate a major online ticket marketplace. Ticketmaster also incurs costs to negotiate contracts with venues and promoters across the live entertainment industry.
The fees provide the bulk of Ticketmaster’s profits since they only add a small markup to the base ticket price. Ticketmaster claims the convenience fees are a fair charge for the value they provide in enabling quick, seamless ticket purchasing even for high demand events.
Anti-Competitive Practices
Ticketmaster has also faced accusations of anti-competitive behavior due to its huge share of the primary event ticketing market. Critics argue it uses its market power to make it difficult for competitors to challenge its dominance. Some of its alleged anti-competitive tactics include:
- Exclusive deals – Contracts with venues requiring them to only sell tickets through Ticketmaster
- Blocking competitors – Using exclusivity deals to restrict competitors’ access to major venues/events
- Predatory pricing – Undercutting competitors on service fees
- Product tying – Forcing venues to use its ticketing and live analytics services together
These tactics make it very hard for rival ticketing companies to grow their market share and directly compete with Ticketmaster. Consumers and competitors argue this stifles innovation in the industry.
What share of the ticketing market does Ticketmaster have?
Ticketmaster currently commands 80-90% market share of the primary event ticketing industry according to most estimates. This gives it a huge amount of control over ticketing for major concerts, sporting events, theater shows, and other live entertainment events. Such high market share also limits consumer choice.
How has Ticketmaster responded to anti-competition claims?
Ticketmaster contends that it has gained its market position through innovation, providing superior services, and making major investments to meet the huge customer demand for online ticketing. It says consumers continue to choose Ticketmaster because it offers a seamless purchasing experience.
Ticketmaster also notes that it faces growing competition from other ticketing companies trying to leverage new technology and offer different services. It says its market share will naturally erode over time as competitors like Eventbrite, AXS, and SeatGeek gain ground in the industry.
Collusion with Scalpers
Ticketmaster has been accused at multiple points in its history of colluding with ticket scalpers who resold event tickets at inflated prices. Some of the alleged practices include:
- Looking the other way when scalpers violate ticket purchase limits using bots
- Providing scalpers special access to large volumes of tickets ahead of the general public
- Indirectly owning resale companies and scalper firms that markup ticket prices
Critics argue Ticketmaster purposefully allows scalpers to corner the market for popular events so they can profit off highly inflated resale prices. This makes it very difficult for regular fans to purchase tickets at face value.
How has Ticketmaster responded to collusion accusations?
Ticketmaster insists it does not directly cooperate with or support scalpers. It has sued several major ticket brokers for illegally using bots and bulk-purchasing tools to buy up event tickets.
Ticketmaster says it actively works to improve its security systems to identify and block suspicious bulk purchases. However, it’s an ongoing challenge as scalpers find new ways to game the system.
More recently, Ticketmaster has expanded its own ticket resale platform to try to counter scalpers by providing fans a verified resale marketplace. This allows fans to resell unwanted tickets while avoiding highly inflated prices on secondary markets.
Lawsuits and Government Action
Ticketmaster’s controversial business practices have led to numerous lawsuits and government action seeking to limit its power in the ticketing industry.
Notable Lawsuits
| Year | Plaintiff(s) | Claim(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | String Cheese Incident band | Anti-competitive behavior through exclusive deals with venues |
| 2014 | Songkick | Interfering with competitors through exclusivity agreements |
| 2019 | Twenty U.S. states | Colluding with scalpers, deceptive advertising |
While Ticketmaster has prevailed against some lawsuits, others have resulted in major settlements forcing changes to Ticketmaster’s business practices.
Government Fines & Consent Decrees
Ticketmaster has also faced government fines and must abide by consent decrees imposed to curb anti-competitive practices:
- 1994 – Fined $1.5 million for violating a consent decree requiring them to disclose service fees upfront.
- 2009 – Agreed to allow other ticketing platforms to sell seats at venues where they are the primary ticketer.
- 2019 – Fined $10 million by the FTC for violating consumer protection laws.
Public Outrage
The accusations against Ticketmaster have stoked public outrage over the years as fans complain about exorbitant fees and the difficulty getting tickets to see their favorite artists live in concert.
High-profile concerts triggering backlash
Some recent examples of major concerts that led to anti-Ticketmaster sentiment include:
- 2017 – Harry Styles concert tour where many fans were unable to purchase tickets despite waiting in online queues.
- 2018 – Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour that sold out in minutes leaving many fans without tickets.
- 2022 – Taylor Swift Eras Tour which caused Ticketmaster’s site to crash during presales due to extremely high demand.
In each case, Ticketmaster was accused of not doing enough to ensure regular fans had fair access to tickets. The system seemed gamed to allow scalpers, bots, and bulk purchasers to snap up tickets first.
Impact on Ticketmaster’s reputation
The public relations fallout from these incidents has further cemented Ticketmaster’s poor reputation in the minds of many music fans. Memes and viral jokes at Ticketmaster’s expense frequently spread after ticket sale debacles.
However, Ticketmaster has yet to make major structural changes to address these complaints. The lack of consumer-friendly options in the event ticketing market continues to leave Ticketmaster dominant despite the ongoing controversies.
Conclusion
In summary, Ticketmaster has faced a repeating cycle of accusations, lawsuits, fines and public outrage over its pricing, anti-competitive tactics, and collusion with scalpers. Despite the backlash, Ticketmaster remains the primary ticket vendor for most major concerts and events in the U.S. due to its entrenched position in the industry.
It continues to walk a fine line between aggressively maximizing profit through controversial practices and trying to maintain its reputation among eventgoers. Ticketmaster has made some concessions when forced to by legal action but has largely defended its business model. The core complaints around high fees and difficulty accessing tickets remain ongoing issues for consumers.