2y ago

Feds subpoena Ticketmaster over egregious concert ticket prices — A spokesperson for Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, said the firm doesn't “feel comfortable” sharing information with Congress

www.vice.com

Feds Subpoena Ticketmaster Over Egregious Concert Prices After It 'Stonewalled' Lawmakers

Feds subpoena Ticketmaster over egregious concert ticket prices — A spokesperson for Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, said the firm doesn't “feel comfortable” sharing information with Congress::A spokesperson for Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, said the firm doesn't “feel comfortable” sharing information with Congress.

BrainWorms @lemm.ee

DeadWorld @lemm.ee

2y ago

www.vice.com /en/article/ak3ajk/feds-subpoena-ticketmaster-over-egregious-concert-prices-after-it-stonewalled-lawmakers

62 comments

Ticketmaster/Live Nation is one of the most blatant monopolies in all of history. They should be torn to shreds.
- Most people don't even know how many music venues the monopoly has acquired over the past 20 years
  
  It's be easier to count the ones they haven't gotten, on one hand.
- I'm shocked it's been allowed. They have been a monopoly for decades.
  
  Since the 1980s
- For sure, this shit has been bothering me for years. For as long as I can remember, Ticketmaster has been the only way of getting tickets to big events near me. And I presume it's the same for everyone else too.
  How have they got away for so long without any competition?
- Torn to shreds and soaked in lye until a smooth pulp is formed.
Is it the kind of discomfort one feels when they need to use a bathroom but there is only one for a 10,000 person event? Or the kind of discomfort one feels when it's a record heat wave but a bottle of water is $20 and despite advertising free water stations, there are none? Oh or maybe the discomfort in paying mystery fees that equal the price of the ticket?
Or maybe the kind of discomfort that only an illegitimate business model about to be exposed would evoke?
- Sounds more like the discomfort of buying a ticket to a show for someone they think won't be popular when they go on sale for $20 then having your tickets cancelled the week before the show when they blow up on YouTube and the show sells out in hours for over $200/ticket.
  
  Whoa that happened? What was the artist?
- I sure hope it's all of the above combined times a zillion.
- This sounds like the ravings of some woke anti-capitalist! /s
I don't feel comfortable with their prices.
- I don't feel comfortable with their monopolistic and anti-competitive practices either.
See what happens when you don't jail cunts that ignore congressional subpoenas?!?
In the early 2000s Ticketmaster began to really take off. The fees and extras really started to bother me. So I stopped going to any events that used them. Other than a few state/county fair events I haven't been to a concert since 2001. Because of Ticketmaster. I have no regrets either.
When your kids say "don't look in my pockets!" they definitely have something there you need to see.
- When your dog pushes back on you trying to pry open their mouth, you know where the missing family cockatoo is.
- Hahahaha yesterday during the pie preparations my daughter and I passed each other as I was heading back to the kitchen and she said, apropos of nothing, "I didn't just steal any whipped cream, shut up!"
  LOL I didn't know they'd been looting the whipped cream before that point but bless their hearts it was cute
  
  lol nice. My 3 year old keeps saying "Dad don't look!" It's funny when it's a three year old with an orange.
Release the dogs on them. Live Nation has done nothing but rip off concert goers and harm small bands with their ridiculous fees and contractual venue restrictions, and this is without even touching on the horrible ticket scalping issues that they refuse to do anything about.
If I'm also recalling correctly, if a venue is signed up to Ticketmaster they cannot independently host events - everything has to be done through Ticketmaster 🤦‍♂️
- If I'm also recalling correctly, if a venue is signed up to Ticketmaster they cannot independently host events - everything has to be done through Ticketmaster 🤦‍♂️
  I may be wrong here, but I think this is an optional sign on, but they get something out of agreeing to it.
  
  Also not sure, but I think it was something about concessions. Like if they don't agree, TM takes a cost of beer and food which is a huge money maker.
  The option is likely just there to say it's technically optional.
"Oh, really? Well, we don't feel comfortable continuing your license to practice business in the United States!"
- Ticketmaster is the reason I don't go to any events.
- Honestly sounds like a RICO case to me.
“After facing criticism from both fans and politicians for its failed handling of Taylor Swift ticket sales, Live Nation Entertainment announced a "Fair Ticketing Act" proposal in February that would try to combat bots and ticket scalpers in the resale market. Nothing yet appears to have come from this proposal.”
No shit. What incentive do they actually have to make changes when the current system makes them more money?
- That's because they're the fucking scalpers.
It’s a subpoena. Comfortable doesn’t even begin to come into play.
- That's what I was thinking. The oil and gas industry and the auto industry has a lot more pull and clout than LN/TM and they were both dragged in front of Congress. Do you think they were "comfortable" with their interrogations by unfriendly congressmen? Fuck no. Did they go without too much whining, as far as I remember.
Too fucking bad, I don't feel comfortable with you existing.
Another obvious monopoly we refuse to break up.
- What you mean "we"?
These goddamn capitalists pigs are out of control
- we need to harvest already, theyre shitting and squealing everywhere.
Who cares if you feel comfortable? Did you ask me if people are comfortable paying high prices for tickets? You took all this money, and you keep doing it! You are a thief, my dude; you make people pay more than what they are supposed to pay. People are stupid too, instead of stop buying tickets, and report ticketmaster and live nation, they are keeping buying tickets! bravoooooo!!!
I don't "feel comfortable" paying extortion prices, either.
"Why don't you feel comfortable about sharing?"
"Before I tell you, you have to promise not to indict me."
"..."
"Promise?"
"... okay. We promise not to indict you."
"Okay, the thing is, I may have conspired with competitors to corner the market on ticket sales and bought up 85% of performance venues to lock in performers into using me to distribute tickets. Thus giving me near total control of the market."
"Yeah, that's a monopoly. We're breaking you up."
"YOU PROMISED NOT TO!"
"No, we promised not to indict you. Commerce doesn't need an indictment to pull your articles of corporation."
"Durnit!"
If this doesn't end with Ticketmaster getting broken up it will be an egregious miscarriage of justice.
- well good news everyone - you most definitely can try that 😆
  and you will be about as succesful as they will be with their subpoena refusal.
A local, small time hockey team has middle-arena ticket for $13. The price almost doubles because they use tm. $10 in cOnVeNiEnCe fees and processing and the "privilege" of using their shitty app.
Thankfully, subpoenas don’t care about how comfortable you are.
Oh no, they're uncomfortable?
All the more reason for them to comply, really
Why aren’t you comfortable sharing information with congress?
Well that only took forty years. They’ve been doing this since the 80s.
- Don't worry, they'll be doing it another 40
Nice! Let’s do insurance next!
$30? That'll be $180, please. -TicketMaster
To be fair, I don't feel comfortable sharing information with anyone, let alone fucking congress. So I can kinda see their point.
On the other hand, I also don't feel comfortable with the spokesperson not getting raped with a rake. What now, spokesperson? How shall we solve this little dilemma?
if congress wanted your testimony do you think that your comfort would be a factor in what they do and how they do it? The law is different for the very rich. It's aspirational rather than authoritative. "We would really like to comply, but I just don't think it's gonna work out."
Is it unreasonable to pray this is the thing that gets young voters to actually vote?
- They have plenty of reasons, this is just a clear cut example to point to and say "see? This right here is going on everywhere, and that's why things suck. This shit right here - this is the problem"
  It's got attention and hardly anyone is defending Ticketmaster... They're pretty universally hated, even my conservative family members who reflexively jump up to defend businesses complain about them
  I hope people will start looking at Amazon, Google, Facebook, grocery store suppliers, and everywhere else, and see the same patterns of companies racing each other to make worse products at higher prices
Local mom has one weird trick to tell Congress to pound sand, Congressman hate her for it!
D'aww the poor dears. Wouldn't wanna make them uncomfortable
pinches cheek
I bet they hand out trophies at the corporations when they get investigated for egregious pricing.
Here in Germany there are some venues that sell their tickets through dice.fm which seems not to charge extreme fees. Is this something that’s also available where you folks are?
- Live nation owns all the event locations, so not really. It’s really ridiculous. Back in the early 2000s or late 90’s you could get tickets for good bands at around $15-30. All day festivals would be around $20 and 3 day events were something like $100.
  Can’t even see nickleback now for $100

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