Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster are facing significant criticism from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and seven states, as they are hit with a lawsuit for supposedly participating in unlawful ticket resale practices. The lawsuit alleges that the company has failed to regulate large-scale ticket resale activities, bots, and purchase restrictions, reportedly working in conjunction with scalpers to unlawfully profit. Music enthusiasts have long voiced their frustrations over this problem, which connects to a broader underground economy that includes scalpers, reseller networks, and hackers.
As reported by CNBC, the FTC charges Ticketmaster with “triple dipping” profits by imposing fees on brokers in both the primary and secondary markets, in addition to charging concert attendees. This practice has allegedly resulted in consumers incurring approximately $16 billion in fees and has breached the 2016 Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act.
A high-ranking Ticketmaster official admitted in an internal email, shared with Live Nation management, that the companies “turn a blind eye as a matter of policy” to brokers breaching ticket limits, as stated by the FTC. An internal audit revealed that five brokers controlled 6,345 Ticketmaster accounts and possessed 246,407 concert tickets for 2,594 events. Ticketmaster’s TradeDesk system, designed to monitor high-volume ticket purchasers, is supposed to track those who exceed purchase limits and maintain multiple accounts.
Additionally, the FTC claims the company has engaged in deceptive advertising of ticket prices by displaying prices lower than the overall total after fees and markups, violating the FTC Act.
Throughout the past year, Live Nation has been under scrutiny from entertainment figures and federal authorities, including an anti-trust investigation by the U.S. Justice Department in 2024. Stars like Taylor Swift have spoken out against the company as fans face varying ticket prices, lengthy lines, and bots utilized by resellers to swiftly acquire tickets. A Minnesota law regulating online ticket sales and prohibiting bots was implemented earlier this year.