Ticketmaster is one of the largest ticket brokers in the music business and has received criticism from fans and artists alike for their price gouging.
The company operates similarly to car dealerships, airlines, and hotels, in that when the demand increases, so do their prices.
To many customers, the reason for the high prices is unclear when comparing current prices to tickets they’ve purchased in the past for significantly less.
Why Is Ticketmaster So Expensive? (10 Reasons)
The music industry is an entertainment industry, and the concerts and festivals we attend reflect this with their dynamic and elaborate displays of lights, colors, and equipment.
The extra fees and pricing may seem extreme, but it all seems to be a result of consumer demand.
Also, like with many common goods, the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the supply chain and the availability of materials needed to put on these exciting musical displays.
1. Elaborate Productions To Meet Consumer Interests
Many artists, like Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, and Katy Perry are known for their over-the-top, extravagant musical productions.
Fans don’t just go to a concert for the music—they also go for the experience.
Many artists respond to this demand by putting on intense productions which involve dangerous stunts like flipping off stages, twirling through the air, and wild outfits.
Not to mention the strobe lights and other visual effects that set the mood of the show.
This level of production requires more materials and more people, and therefore more money.
It is easy to overlook all of the materials that go into building a show.
Production includes the stage(s), lights, speakers, props, and other decorations.
Also, you can’t forget the mechanics and technology necessary to transport the artist from one side of the arena to the other, usually underground or through the air in a lift.
Many of the venues where artists play don’t have these materials already in place, so artists have to have these things shipped to the location.
This could be done by air, water, or train—whatever is available at the time.
Each method has different requirements for safe transportation and the costs vary.
The increase in ticket pricing, particularly on Ticketmaster, can in part be blamed on the continuous demand for artists to put on the best show possible.
2. Extra Fees Can Be Higher Than The Face Value Price
When purchasing a ticket, the price that is paid is just for the ticket itself.
This is called the face value of the ticket.
Rather, the total cost paid when purchasing a ticket is made up of the face value price, service fees or convenience charges, order processing fees, delivery charges, facility charges, and taxes.
Other fees may be added as determined by venues and artists.
These additional fees placed on top of the face value of the tickets are sometimes more than half the price of the original ticket.
According to Ticketmaster, the tickets sold on their site are not always owned by Ticketmaster.
They may be resale tickets owned by fans or season ticket holders.
These sellers determine the price of the ticket in collaboration with Ticketmaster.
The seller also receives a portion of the profit from their tickets, but fees are taken from the resale price before the seller is paid.
These fees can change over time.
Ticketmaster states the fees collected help sustain the software, equipment, services, and support needed to manage ticket sales and the box office.
The fees also support the sales network that distributes the tickets to fans.
The fees are also used to help pay the venue, promoters, Ticketmaster, and the artist.
However, in many cases, the fees fans are asked to pay are higher than what is necessary.
For example, the order processing fee may only be $50, but fans are charged $60.
Another example is when tickets are delivered via USPS.
Ticketmaster will charge a price that’s higher than the actual cost of the postage.
This is a tactic used by Ticketmaster to ensure that they also earn a profit.
Facility charges are an additional fee determined by the client.
This extra fee typically helps to prepare the venue for the event and then invests money back into the venue for future repairs or additions.
Ticketmaster does not benefit from this charge—it is collected and delivered to the venue.
Taxes are determined by the city, state, and local governments.
This fee is usually included in the face value price of the ticket unless listed separately.
3. Live Nation Entertainment Holds The Majority Of The Ticket Market
Even the United States House of Representatives has spoken out about the “monopoly” that is Ticketmaster and Live Nation Entertainment.
Live Nation Entertainment is the parent company of Ticketmaster.
In the letter written to President Joe Biden, they state that Live Nation Entertainment holds “more than 80% of the venue ticket sales market” which they consider unfair and deceptive practice.
Live Nation Entertainment has even gone so far as to ensure that tickets purchased on other secondary services besides Ticketmaster are invalid.
This has caused fans to be refused entry into arenas with these secondary market tickets that they believed to be valid.
Live Nation is also known for their high parking fees and markups on beer, water, and food sold at the venues they control.
4. 90% Of Ticketmaster’s Tickets Are Not Available To The Public
The majority of tickets acquired by Ticketmaster, up to 90%, are not even sold to the public.
Instead, these extra tickets are kept for the secondary market and usually sold to professional brokers at a high price.
These brokers then sell the tickets to consumers at a price higher than what they were purchased for.
This is a “double-edged sword” because the remaining tickets available on Ticketmaster are in high demand and they are priced higher to reflect that demand.
Those who turn to the professional brokers or secondary markets to purchase their tickets are paying the typically higher price determined by that broker.
Seemingly, no one can win besides the seller.
5. Some Artists Have Attempted To Cut Out Ticketmaster With No Success
Not only is the price gouging a frustration to fans, but it is also a frustration to many artists.
Pearl Jam and the Pixies are just two of many bands that have attempted to leave Ticketmaster out of the ticket-buying process, to no avail.
Ticketmaster and Live Nation Entertainment have become dominant and generally untouchable in the ticket sales industry.
The attempts made by artists to avoid using Ticketmaster have generally been unsuccessful.
Competitive companies, like Ticketron, TicketWeb, and others have been overtaken by Ticketmaster.
Artists who have tried to sell their tickets on their own rather than using a software system like Ticketmaster quickly realize just how difficult it is and the high level of infrastructure required to be successful.
The software required to sell tickets and securely collect and store customer information is complicated, expensive, and hard to implement compared to what Ticketmaster has built since the company’s initial creation, so most ultimately decide against selling tickets on their own.
While it is common for a site to “crash” or temporarily shut down due to high amounts of traffic, Ticketmaster’s software is able to limit this from happening.
Their software is also secure and can protect against automatic “robots” attempting to steal or purchase tickets at a steep discount to be resold.
Another reason Ticketmaster has become so dominant is that they benefit the venues.
Companies like Ticketron actually charge the venue a small fee to help support Ticketron’s software.
Ticketmaster changed the game by instead offering to pay the venues by increasing fees charged to consumers.
The venues that work with Ticketmaster receive a portion of the money earned on ticket purchases.
6. Last Minute Cancellations Are Factored Into The Price
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many venues now have to plan for unexpected cancellations and refund requests if ticketholders get sick or come into contact with someone who has COVID.
The ticketholders not able to attend not only get a refund which is counted as an income loss, but those same customers also are not purchasing the drinks, food, and merchandise at the venue either.
In the UK, over 25% of shows within the first few months of 2022 have had to be canceled due to the pandemic.
This has caused income loss for artists, production crews, and venues.
To combat the potential income lost from these refunds, the overall price of tickets has increased.
Other factors to consider are last-minute cancellations by the artists, whether for sickness, bad weather, or other reasons.
These cancellations are taken very seriously and do not happen often.
In most cases, these shows are postponed rather than canceled.
This is because canceling a show is incredibly expensive, as venues, staff, and vendors still have to be paid.
Even shows that are rescheduled result in the artist, venue, and promoter losing money.
Ticketmaster states on their site that they do their best to contact ticketholders and provide a refund or alternate opportunities in the case of cancellation.
However, in some instances, the venue or event organizer may prevent them from refunding customers.
7. Supply Chain Issues Impact The Music Industry
Supply chain issues being experienced around the globe also contribute to the rising costs of tickets.
Essential venue items, like port-a-potties and toilet paper, are difficult to find and expensive to purchase and ship to venues.
Venues purchase in bulk and store as much as they are able.
In general, inflation has caused many common items to be sold at extremely high prices which then affect the price of tickets.
Since the onset of the pandemic, venues have had to purchase excessive amounts of cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer, all of which were in high demand and difficult to obtain and also cost more than usual.
8. International Tours Have To Comply With the Individual Requirements Of Different Countries And States
Artists touring internationally have to comply with the standards set in each country.
These standards may include expensive COVID testing and isolation practices for all production staff, as well as obtaining visas and other requirements prior to being allowed into the country.
The insurance that venues need is also costly, but it’s essential to protect the production team, the artists, and the venue from any accidents which may occur throughout the concert setup and performance process.
In the UK, regulations have also been placed on vehicles that transport the production supplies that make these musical shows possible.
9. High Demand Since Coronavirus Restrictions Have Lifted
Ticketmaster already determines the price of their Official Platinum Seats using dynamic ticket pricing, also called market-based pricing.
These are seats that are sold for the first time on Ticketmaster, and if there is a high demand for them, the price increases.
However, the pandemic has also played a role in the demand for tickets.
Throughout the pandemic, businesses all around the world had to close
This was especially true for businesses, like music venues, that hosted large groups of people.
Since restrictions have been lifted, the demand for tickets has doubled as many people around the world are excited to return to partaking in their favorite pastimes, including attending concerts.
Live Nation Entertainment, the parent company of Ticketmaster, announced that fan demand has led to double-digit growth in ticket sales.
The return to in-person events has also led to double-digit growth in the number of attendees at these shows.
This has led to a price increase as well.
Live Nation stated that the intense demand encouraged them to enact new health and safety protocols and to hire extra staff to provide services to concert, festival, and sporting events attendees.
10. Your Favorite Artist May Actually Be The One To Blame
The dynamic pricing method mentioned above is not always the practice used on Ticketmaster.
Instead, the artist may choose to use this method of adjusting pricing as the demand changes.
For example, Rolling Stone reports that Taylor Swift has a history of using this method.
Because demand shifts, her ticket prices ranged from $995+ when demand was high, to $595 when demand was lower.
Other artists known to use this method of pricing include U2, Kenny Chesney, Pink, and Shania Twain.
The obvious disadvantage of using this method is that customers can end up paying an exorbitant amount of money for a ticket that really doesn’t cost that much.
However, there are some advantages to it.
The original reasoning for this method was to limit tickets being sold on other platforms like StubHub, which are known for purchasing tickets early and selling for three to five times the original purchase price.
These tickets sold on Ticketmaster are called Official Platinum Seats and are only sold on Ticketmaster.
They are not available for secondary platforms to purchase and resell.
Whether purchasing through a secondary platform or going directly through Ticketmaster, if tickets are in high demand, they are going to be expensive.
But Doc McGhee, the manager of KISS, states that purchasing directly from Ticketmaster benefits the artists and bands rather than the secondary platform that otherwise exclusively keeps the income.
Not all artists agree with this method, however.
The Foo Fighters is one such band that does not agree and requests tickets be sold at one price without changing.
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