Maybe they should be called "Ticket Massa" since they hold everyone in chains when it comes to securing tickets for a reasonable price and assuring that they would be made available to fans at prices they can afford. Today, they were the piñata as Congress simply slammed them over and over saying they were the problem in the way they represented the artist and inflated ticket prices for the shows. Look, we all get it, everything has gone up, the so called supply chain is a mess and the cost of transportation, hotels and the backline sound and lights to put on a great show have gone through the roof. Everyone is being forced to scramble to make a buck and in fact even worse, they are also trying to make a premium on their efforts to try to make up for what has been lost in the way of revenues for the past two years now. That may all be true but no one has the right to alter the rules and make the true fan feel as if they don't matter and their needs are not aligned with those of the artist, or so it seems they tried to do that but failed. Ticket agencies are becoming too powerful and own the concession of distribution and making it worse, they own or have exclusive contracts with the venues they solicited the tickets for, making it as close to a monopoly as possible. This has got to stop and artists need to demand that there be a set percentage all tickets to be held and sold to their fans and those with special needs or disabilities.
While Ticketmaster and their parent company, Live Nation, have certainly be bitten by the greedy bug, it is not them alone but to that of the artists who continue to sell their service like À la carte menu items. You can purchase a preshow photo, do an after show, meet and greets, and much more, all for a price. So when some of these artists feign their love for their fans and say they do this for the people look at their ticket prices they allow and the services they use as cash cows to fund their lives. They are not whiter than white and they set the wheels in motion to allow those like Live Nation, to do what they do and in some ways condone it." No superstar should charge so much that two ticket, parking and a drink or two will cost as much as being a late home entertainment unit. It is wrong and whomever they are from Springsteen to Elton John, they should show some deference and appreciation to fans for their support in these challenging times.
So shame on Live Nation for being the front men and the heavies when it comes to their reckless greedy actions and also a bit of a slap on the wrist for those artists who do a wink wink and a nod and are more than willing to take the money that the promoters bring in and run.
"The Senate Judiciary Committee slammed concert giant Live Nation on Tuesday, calling on activists and artists to speak to competition in the ticketing industry following a botched sale of Taylor Swift tickets in November.
Led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who helms antitrust investigations for the committee, senators grilled Live Nation’s chief financial officer, Joe Berchtold, about the company’s dominance in the ticketing business. Industry witnesses described a monopoly-like control over venues, artists and consumers.
“Ticketmaster should look in the mirror and say, ‘I’m the problem, it’s me,’” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said, playing off Swift song lyrics."