"We're not the problem." - Ticketmaster, while literally being the problem

The FTC just dropped the hammer on Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation (-3.91%), suing them for running what's basically a legalized scalping operation that's been bleeding fans dry for years. The lawsuit alleges these guys have been coordinating with brokers to scoop up millions in tickets, then flipping them at markup prices while pretending they're the good guys.

(Source: Giphy) 

Spoiler: It’s a scam. Here’s how it works: Ticketmaster puts up fake purchase limits, then lets their broker buddies use bot armies and fake accounts to bypass those same limits. The brokers grab tickets by the thousands, flip them on Ticketmaster's own platform at insane markups, and Ticketmaster gets a cut of every inflated sale. It's like if the casino was also running the card counting operation.

(Source: Wall Street Journal) 

For more context, the FTC says consumers dropped over $82.6 billion on Ticketmaster between 2019 and 2024, with the company controlling 80% of major U.S. concert venue ticketing. That's monopoly-level market control being used to run a price-gouging scheme that makes Martin Shkreli look much, much less of a sleaze bag. 

Case in point: Remember when Ticketmaster's site imploded during Taylor Swift's Eras Tour presale? Turns out that wasn't just incompetence… it was bots working overtime to vacuum up tickets for the resale market while actual fans got error message’d to oblivion. Whereas, now the lawsuit comes from the FTC plus seven states (Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia) seeking civil penalties and whatever other financial pain the court wants to dish out.

Live look at Live Nation right now: 

(Source: Giphy) 

Additionally, you know it’s gotten real AF when Trump, who signed an executive order in March on this very scam, targets ticket scalping, with Kid Rock standing right there in the Oval Office. Even politicians who can't agree on anything hate Ticketmaster's business model. Which is understandable.

So yeah, there you have it. Ticketmaster has spent years perfecting the art of making fans pay twice… once when they fail to get tickets at face value, and again when they're forced to buy from scalpers on the same platform that blocked them the first time. And now, the FTC finally called bullsh*t on the whole operation. Meaning, we officially get the privilege of watching Live Nation try to explain why their "strict" ticket limits somehow don't apply to the brokers making them rich LOL. Until next time, friends…

At the time of publishing, Stocks.News does not hold position in companies mentioned in the article.