The company put on more than 40,000 events around the world and sold 485 million tickets in 2019, the last year unaffected by the pandemic for which it has disclosed data. Why the change had happened wasnt entirely clear, but according to the New York Times, Barclays received fewer Live Nation tours after inking the SeatGeek deal. The Swifties were vying for spots at the pop stars six Eras Tour concerts in France slated for June 2024. The first witness this morning is Joe Berchtold, the president and chief financial officer of Live Nation Entertainment. Live Nation came under fierce questioning from lawmakers and competitors at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday that explored whether the companys 2010 merger with Ticketmaster, which formed a colossus without equal in the multibillion-dollar live music business, had stifled competition and hurt consumers. The Eras Tour, Swifts first worldwide tour in five years, has set records for Ticketmaster traffic en route to becoming a bona fide cultural phenomenon. Im against dumb, Kennedy told the Live Nation president. Because people just fall in line.. Many venues wind up almost obligated to sell on Ticketmaster because, if they dont, Live Nation can use its promotional power to basically block the venue from getting shows. That's in. Witt believes the ticketing market is ripe for disruption but is held back by Ticketmasters dominance. Sat Sep 23 1:00 PM Ruoff Music Center, Noblesville, IN. Live Nation - Mobile Tickets Check the venue website leading up to your event for the latest protocols. File a Complaint. Live Nation Live Events, Concert Tickets, Tour News, Venues A new class-action lawsuit seeking to represent any Ticketmaster customers who purchased tickets since last July claims . Ticketmaster Hearing Takeaways: Senators Grill Live Nation for Taylor Others are saying they just keep getting error messages. The Senate Judiciary Committee scheduled a hearing in late January in large part in reaction to Swiftgate to dig into competition or, rather, lack thereof in the ticketing industry. Expert Witness on Ticketmaster/Live Nation Merger Weighs in on Taylor First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. Been waiting for 10 minutes for this to load. And so were stuck in a constant loop of Ticketmaster horror stories that, again, have nothing to do with Taylor Swift, and we cant escape. On Thursday, Sen. Amy . This is silly, another person replied to Live Nation. During the sale In the news Home Economy Taylor Swift fans are angry at Ticketmaster's merger with Live Nation after the company's debacle around her concert tickets. Swift was a debacle.. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. As to the larger questions of competition in the ticketing marketplace, Mr. Berchtold argued that it was greater than ever, and said that Ticketmaster had to fight to retain its business. Live Nation exec faces lawmakers about Taylor Swift concert tickets Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the top Republican on the committee, used his opening remarks to offer optimism, suggesting that the Senate Judiciary Committee will be able to work together well in the new Congress. Musicians, dont trust Live Nation with your livelihood, Clyde Lawrence, of the band Lawrence, wrote in an opinion essay for The New York Times last month. In the case of resale tickets, listing prices are determined by the seller, which can include fans or season ticket holders. But also watching closely, and bringing their own heat, were Taylor Swifts fans. With this ticket delivery method, your mobile ticket will be displayed on your phone for entry into your event. Ticketing Website Login Something else. The cheapest tickets for Bill Burr are still $69 come on you guys! People are having problems buying tickets from Live Nation's $25 I imagine if you are here to read about Ticketmaster it is, at least in part, because of Taylor Swift. If you missed the opportunity to purchase parking or haven't received your parking pass, contact Fan Support. But the local power company down here that is not the billion dollar company you are they can tell when theyve got a bad actor in their system. Service Fees, Order Processing Fees, Taxes, and Shipping Charges . As mentioned, the DOJ is now investigating Live Nation Entertainment and its activities in the years following the Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger. Blue October Tickets Nov 09, 2023 Anaheim, CA | Live Nation In December, Bryan dropped a live album titled All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster to drive home his disdain, not that hes really worried about hiding it. All rights reserved. What flight attendants wish all travelers knew, Even the scientists who build AI cant tell you how it works, Bidens new plan to forgive $39 billion in student loans, explained, Sign up for the Swifties were not the only pop music fans furious with Ticketmaster last year. In mid-June, President Joe Biden hosted ticketing companies from around the country to rein in so-called "junk fees," an item that has been on his presidential agenda since his February State of the Union address. We can cross our fingers and hope that the Biden DOJ is going to take a more aggressive approach here, but you also have to consider in parallel all of these state-level initiatives, she said. Wilk's bill easily passed through the California Senate in May and is currently sitting in the state assembly awaiting action. The ASLEF train drivers' union has also announced strikes and overtime bans. Ticketmaster controls more than 70 percent of the ticketing and live events market. This mornings sale was disrupted by an issue with a third-party provider and they are working to resolve this matter as soon as possible.. If you're using a mobile, you may want to try using Wi-Fi rather than 3G/4G, just in case you lose signal. It also wouldnt guarantee an end to any funny business between Ticketmaster and Live Nation. The greatest outcome would be absolutely a breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, probably also Frontline Management, their artist management company, Brown said. Catherine D (@calizamatilda) May 4, 2022, i am looking for backstreet boys concert in vancouver, i do not see an option for that venue, John Andersen (@johnnykandersen) May 4, 2022, Are we supposed to put in a code or something? . SeatGeek replaced Ticketmaster at Barclays Center in Brooklyn last year, but the arena switched back to Ticketmaster this month, only one year into SeatGeeks contract. Ticketmaster Hearing Takeaways: After Taylor Swift Debacle, Some Senators Call Live Nation a Monopoly. If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Executives spar over what drove a Ticketmaster competitor out of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. as well as other partner offers and accept our. Theres no competition, and they know they dont have to provide services that keep people happy on the artist side and venue side and customer side. Near the end of the hearing, Senator Josh Hawley, Republican of Missouri, pressed Joe Berchtold, Live Nations president and chief financial officer, over how Ticketmaster controls ticket resales on its platform, calling it a monopoly. IN for Sep 23, 2023 at Live Nation. In a separate court filing in a case regarding Live Nation Entertainment and the DOJ's "consent decree," the Department of Justice made a similar argument. Why is it, she asked, that you have not developed an algorithm to sort out what is a bot and what is a consumer?. Elevate your live music experience with The Live Nation App. This is silly. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted: Daily reminder that Ticketmaster is a monopoly, adding that the companys merger with the concert promoter Live Nation should never have been approved. She concluded, Break them up.. While Ticketmaster had an estimated 80 percent of major concert venues at the time of its 2010 merger with Live Nation, the company has lost market share since then, Mr. Berchtold said. Ticketmaster and Live Nation Entertainment insist they have competition that makes them try to try. Watch: Senators grill Live Nation on the bot activity it blamed for the Taylor Swift ticket fiasco. Its not us, its everyone but us, Blumenthal says, summarizing what he says is Live Nations position. I didnt think it was right. complaining of technical difficulties, hourslong wait times. During the hearing, Live Nation President and CFO Joe Berchtold blamed bots and cyber attacks for the problems during the ticket sale, adding that bots failed to acquire tickets, but that dealing . Subscribe to Well Adjusted, our newsletter full of simple strategies to work smarter and live better, from the Fortune Well team. You cant blame bots for what happened to Taylor Swift, theres more to that story that youre not hearing, he testified later. Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota, who has been a longtime critic of Live Nation, directly accused the company in her opening statement of being a monopoly that harms consumers. Live Nation cited the approval of its merger in 2010 and the consent decree it had to follow afterward which was extended through 2025 after the previous investigation as evidence that all. Since Congress approved the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster in 2010, they have controlled nearly 90% of the live entertainment market. A California legislator is trying to strike back at Live Nation Entertainment's grip on the live events space. Lets talk vertical mergers, corporate consolidation, and Taylor Swift. The problem with Ticketmaster, explained not by Taylor Swift - Vox Daily Hive is a Canadian-born online news source, established in 2008, that creates compelling, hyperlocal content. According to fans on social media, the Ticketmaster site seemed to have technical problems, with the webpage freezing with a loading icon and not allowing shoppers to buy the items already in their cart. Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee grilled Joe Berchtold, the president of Live Nation, over his claim that bot activity caused the botched Ticketmaster rollout for Taylor Swifts Eras tour. California's Senate Bill 829, which Wilk introduced in February 2023, bans entertainment facilities (like arenas, amphitheaters, and stadiums) from entering into exclusivity contracts with ticketing companies. Everyone's worst fears about the Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger have Sign up for notifications from Insider! The far rights war on woke has real-world consequences for the military, How to keep your CSA produce from rotting in your refrigerator, Teachers are striking for more than just pay raises, Sudans mass grave is the latest development in a brutal conflict. Once you choose your desired event, select the "Summer's Live 4 Pack" ticket type and it'll instantly add a four-pack of tickets to your cart. When companies gain so much influence, you really cant get around them even when theyre a disaster, and apparently, even if youre Taylor Swift. And for much of the next hour, many of her colleagues Democrats and Republicans alike made clear they actually agreed. The bottom line is that U.S. ticketing markets have never been more competitive than they are today, Berchtold said. Lawsuit Claims Live Nation, Ticketmaster Have Monopoly on Ticket Sales Contact Us How to get help Buy Tickets Presales, Advance Registration, Payments details My Tickets How to manage your tickets Resale Buy and Sell your tickets Ticket Delivery Latest delivery information Transfer Tickets How to receive and accept a transfer The report, made using proprietary data collected by senior policy analyst Krista Brown, found that 78% of the highest-grossing arenas in the United States use ticketing services provided by Ticketmaster. She also said, I believe in capitalism, and noted the importance of healthy competition in the market. Scott Wilk: Break the Ticketmaster/Live Nation ticket monopoly Mishandled sales for Taylor Swifts tour enraged her fans, and attracted the attention of lawmakers. Support our mission by making a gift today. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. The way your company handled the ticket sales with Ms. Thats in contrast to horizontal mergers, in which one company joins with a competitor in the same industry. A frustrating ticket-buying experience by the niece of California state Sen. Scott Wilk has led to the introduction of a new bill rushing through the California legislature. It finally errored out. I recently went to buy tickets for a monster truck show in New Jersey (dont worry about it) and was surprised to see the price of the two $20 tickets I was looking at had nearly doubled when I got to checkout, due to service fees, facility charges, and order processing fees. In primary, they give a cut to artists, but in secondary, whatever profit margin they have, they just hawk it.. Because people just fall in line.. Part of the problem is that Ticketmaster, owned by Live Nation Entertainment, occupies most of the ticket selling market, so fans have little other choice but to suffer its millions-long queues . "Consumers deserve protection against the clear excesses and abuses of Ticketmaster repeatedly demonstrated in their own lives and documented in Congressional hearings," Blumenthal said. Ticket sales begin May 4 at 10 am EST/7 am PST and end on May 10. Some of the people denied entry to the show had saved large portions of their salaries to buy tickets in a country where the median monthly income is much lower than in the United States. pic.twitter.com/VlzBgbq5dc. But it seems the week has kicked off with technical issues. Buggy ticket sales and market dominance arent the only things Ticketmaster gives fans to complain about. By purchasing tickets to this event you agree to abide by entry requirements in effect at the time of the event. At the same time, given the amount of money they pull in and the commitments they make to artists and the fact that theyre paying their CEOs millions of dollars, they do not invest enough to maintain the platform at an adequate level.. We couldve filled 900 stadiums, he said. It is neat that the Swift debacle has people paying attention to Ticketmaster and its parent companys stronghold on the entertainment industry. A lack of competition stifles innovation, he said, and he added that some venues presumably venues that SeatGeek wants to sell ticketing services to report that they fear losing Live Nation concerts if they dont use Ticketmaster., As long as Live Nation remains both the dominant promoter and ticketer of major venues in the U.S., he said, the industry will continue to lack competition and struggle.. Photo: Jun Sato/TAS18/Getty Images.