2 months ago
Senators slammed Ticketmaster for raising summons fees pursuing a regulatory crackdown connected hidden charges arsenic revealed successful a report by nan Guardian past week.
The Federal Trade Commission past May began requiring Ticketmaster to disclose performance summons fees upfront – a believe known arsenic all-in pricing. The institution eliminated nan bid processing interest it charged astatine nan the extremity of a transaction to comply pinch nan rule.
But documents obtained by nan Guardian successful nationalist records requests show really Ticketmaster simply raised different fees truthful it wouldn’t suffer money.
Former regulators told nan Guardian that nan company’s practices whitethorn break nan Federal Trade Commission’s prohibition connected misleading fees.
“Ticketmaster seems to judge it has a get-out-of-jail-free paper to disregard antitrust and user protection laws. The FTC is going to person to take whether to protect consumers and enforce nan law, aliases cave to Ticketmaster lobbyists,” Richard Blumenthal, a Democratic legislator from Connecticut, said successful a statement.
The Federal Trade Commission sued Ticketmaster on pinch its genitor institution Live Nation Entertainment past September successful portion for hiding mandatory fees until nan extremity of nan transaction. The institution disputed nan allegation and said that it complies pinch FTC’s all-pricing rules.
“Since May 2025, tickets connected Ticketmaster.com person displayed nan afloat value upfront successful statement pinch nan FTC’s all-in pricing rule. We besides supply explanations of fees during nan acquisition process and support a dedicated page pinch further information,” Ticketmaster said.
Blumenthal is simply a ranking personnel of nan imperishable subcommittee connected investigations, which published a report past period astir really Ticketmaster drove up nan costs of performance tickets pursuing nan pandemic. The study recovered nan institution pushed artists to make tickets disposable connected nan resale marketplace earlier they were disposable to nan wide nationalist arsenic good arsenic expanding move pricing, which raised nan costs of tickets for fans. Both practices boosted Ticketmaster’s revenues.
“As revealed by my PSI investigation, Ticketmaster has taken each opportunity to thrust bait-and-switch practices, manipulate nan market, and thrust up nan costs of tickets,” Blumenthal continued.
An ongoing federal trial is considering whether Ticketmaster operates an forbidden monopoly successful nan unrecorded euphony manufacture and unfairly pushes retired competition. The institution has denied that it is simply a monopoly.
A week aft nan proceedings started, nan Department of Justice abruptly reached a settlement pinch Live Nation Entertainment, which drew pushback from lawmakers. More than 30 states decided to proceed nan litigation.
Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic legislator from Massachusetts, was among nan lawmakers who criticized nan deal. In a connection she said nan Guardian’s reporting connected Ticketmaster’s interest practices “is conscionable nan latest logic why Ticketmaster must beryllium surgery up – erstwhile and for all.
“Too galore elephantine monopolies deliberation nan rule doesn’t use to them, and it’s American families who are forced to salary nan price.”
