Ticketmaster Responds to Congress with New Anti-Scalping Measures

Ticketmaster has announced a series of measures aimed at combating ticket scalping, following a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) lawsuit that accuses the platform of collaborating with resellers to inflate prices. In a letter to U.S. senators, Dan Wall, the company’s executive vice president, asserted that “Ticketmaster does more than anyone to fight bots and get tickets into the hands of real fans.”

The new strategies include barring users and ticket brokers from creating multiple accounts, requiring resellers to utilize taxpayer ID verification, and deploying artificial intelligence tools for quicker detection and cancellation of tickets purchased by bots. Wall emphasized the goal of these reforms is to “increase the percentage of tickets going to real fans” by using verification methods such as Social Security numbers to eliminate scalper accounts.

In addition to these measures, Ticketmaster will discontinue its TradeDesk tool, which allowed resellers to monitor their ticket sales. This decision comes amid allegations that the tool was misused to mislead consumers, a claim that Live Nation, Ticketmaster’s parent company, has denied. Furthermore, Ticketmaster refuted accusations from the FTC lawsuit, asserting that it does not engage in collusion with ticket resellers or violate the Better Online Ticket Sales Act (BOTS Act), a law established in 2016 to prevent bots from reselling tickets at inflated prices.

Industry Pushback Against Ticketmaster’s Claims

The response from independent venue and touring organizations has been swift and critical. The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) issued a statement asserting that Live Nation’s actions, as detailed in the letter to Congress, are insufficient to restore trust among fans, artists, and venues. The organization accused Ticketmaster of enabling predatory resellers, describing it as a betrayal of both fans and artists.

NIVA further claimed, “This looks like an attempt to clean up their devastated public image following the FTC’s strong BOTS Act and deceptive practices case against them.” They called for meaningful reforms, suggesting that the best way to address the damage from alleged collusion with scalpers would be for Ticketmaster to voluntarily limit resale tickets to no more than the original ticket’s face value.

Another organization, the National Independent Talent Association (NITA), echoed these sentiments, stating that “Ticketmaster nor any other platform should engage in reselling tickets above face value.” They emphasized that such practices are detrimental to both artists and their audiences. NITA expressed encouragement that the FTC’s actions have already prompted Ticketmaster to cancel multiple broker accounts and enhance its measures against scalping.

As the situation continues to unfold, the implications of these developments for artists and fans remain significant. Ticketmaster’s commitments are positioned as part of a broader effort to regain consumer trust in a market where ticket accessibility has become increasingly contentious.

More updates will follow as the story progresses, particularly regarding the ongoing legal scrutiny and the effectiveness of the newly implemented measures by Ticketmaster.