MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota — The Ticketmaster debacle with Taylor Swift is catching the attention of the government. Senator Amy Klobuchar sent a letter to the CEO of the company demanding answers to antitrust concerns.
Klobuchar is well versed in the merger between Ticketmaster and LiveNation in 2010. She urged the Department of Justice to investigate them in 2019. She asked Michael Rapino, CEO of LiveNation Entertainment the following by November 23:
1. Are you still “confident” that your plan to develop an “easy-access, one-stop platform” that will be a “trusted business partner”1 is working?
2. Typically, what percentage of high-profile tour tickets are available to the general public compared to those allocated to pre-sales, radio stations, VIPs, and other restricted sales opportunities? Please provide specific recent examples and data.
3. Ticketmaster has been repeatedly accused of violating the requirements of its consent decree with the Department of Justice. Is Ticketmaster aware of any complaints that have been made to it or to government agencies about potential noncompliance with the consent decree in the last twelve months? If so, please provide details about each alleged incident.
4. In the last twelve months, how much have you invested in upgrading your systems to address demand surges, and specifically, what improvements did those investments generate?
5. In the last three years, has the Ticketmaster Board of Directors received information about decree compliance? If so, please provide copies of any materials provided to any Board member on this topic.
Klobuchar says she is prepared to hold a hearing on these concerns.
Ticketmaster says it is canceling Friday’s planned general public sale of Taylor Swift concert tickets because it doesn’t haven’t enough inventory.
The ticket seller couldn't handle the millions of fans trying to buy tickets for Taylor Swift's stadium tour as the site crashed and leaving fans empty-handed. Ticketmaster says two million tickets for Swift's 2023 tour were sold during presales on Tuesday, the most tickets ever sold on the platform in a single day. But millions were also left empty-handed as Ticketmaster said there was “insufficient remaining ticket inventory.”
Front row tickets for Swift's concert at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on April 30 are listed for as much as $28,350 each on the resale site.
The Eras Tour is the singer's first tour since 2018.
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