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From the point of view of the promoters, concerts are a two-sided marketplace. Two-sided marketplaces are notoriously difficult for small players to compete in.

From the point of view of the promoters, concerts are a two-sided marketplace. Two-sided marketplaces are notoriously difficult for small players to compete in. You need to attract good acts so people will buy tickets, but to attract the top acts you need to show that you can sell lots of tickets. Ticketmaster avoided the two-sided market problem until they reached scale. They were just a website where you buy tickets, an IT appliance for promoters. But then Ticketmaster started buying out promoters, and that short circuited the entire system. Fans can't buy tickets from a different storefront because their favorite artists are only booking performances with ticketmaster-controlled venues. Top talent can't book high-grossing venues that aren't owned by ticketmaster, because Ticketmaster owns the promoters. Scalpers are a symptom, the disease is consolidation of competitive markets by corporations. This kind of situation is precisely why antitrust law exists.

skeptrune 4mo ago
Well put
swader999 4mo ago
Fixed the last sentence for you: "This kind of situation is exactly why lobbying exists"
stephenhuey 4mo ago
Just tried searching for a long-form article I read in recent years. Wish I could find it, but obviously the facts are not a secret. It explained in depth all the problems with the monopoly, but it also pointed out something very surprising to me. A few artists have spoken out angrily on behalf of their fans. However, the fact is, the artists in general do financially benefit from Ticketmaster's way of doing things. Part of Ticketmaster's business model is taking the heat from the fans who don't like paying all the extra fees so that the anger is not directed at the artists. If an artist wants to set the floor at $150 but knows fans might be upset, they can drop the price 30% and TicketMaster can help them make up the difference in fees, and Ticketmaster has nothing to lose. The artists get to keep their reputation intact instead of appearing greedy to fans.
- manwe150 4mo ago
  Was it possibly actually a podcast? https://www.npr.org/2025/10/23/nx-s1-5582775/are-concert-tickets-under-priced https://www.npr.org/2025/10/23/nx-s1-5582775/are-concert-tic...
  - stephenhuey 4mo ago
    You know what? Might have been Freakonomics: https://freakonomics.com/podcast/why-is-the-live-event-ticket-market-so-screwed-up/ https://freakonomics.com/podcast/why-is-the-live-event-ticke...
  - anitil 4mo ago
    I remember a Planet Money episode, but I can't find it now. Maybe it was NPR instead
- wilkommen 4mo ago
  Could it be this podcast? https://www.organizedmoney.fm/p/emergency-pod-the-live-nation-ticketmaster https://www.organizedmoney.fm/p/emergency-pod-the-live-natio...
- gamblor956 4mo ago
  If an artist wants to set the floor at $150 but knows fans might be upset, they can drop the price 30% and TicketMaster can help them make up the difference in fees, and Ticketmaster has nothing to lose. The artists get to keep their reputation intact instead of appearing greedy to fans This myth keeps getting promulgated and it's just that: a myth. The podcast was wrong about how the music industry actually works. Venues and promoters set the ticket prices, not the artists. The artists get a fixed fee for their performances, and may get a bonus if a certain % of tickets are sold. Even artists on tours don't get to choose the ticket prices. They can ask nicely, but ultimately the promoter decides.
  - pxx 4mo ago
    Do you have evidence for your claims?
quantumwoke 4mo ago
[flagged]
- cdelsolar 4mo ago
  Because he wants to
- ryukoposting 4mo ago
  I didn't?
- samplatt 4mo ago
  Your AI-detector needs a calibrate, I think. What made you think it was llm-written?
mixdup 4mo ago
There were local ticket operations across the US, ticketmaster just bought them all up
llsf 4mo ago
Agree... and not defending Ticketmaster, but regarding scalpers in general, I am not sure why one would blame only the ticketing system. If the artists are willing to say sell tickets for $50.00 and the demand is such that some resell to $400.00 the same seat. Is it the fault of the ticketing system ? Who is the victim ? - The artist who could have make more money (but then they could have price it better) - The fans who are basically competing to see that show ? Scalpers are optimizing the market. Maybe the solution to mitigate scalpers would be for ticket holders to only be able to resell their tickets through the same platform. Then the artist could decide if the fans can resell to the platform at face value, or for a profit. Then the artist could decide if the ticket can be sold by the platform with a markup or not. Basically given the power and control to the artist.
- KingFelix 4mo ago
  The cure did this, we got tickets a few days before the shore, bought from reseller directly through ticket master but they could only be relisted at face value, got 8th for $75 I think, it was a great show
  - magicalhippo 4mo ago
    Here in Norway they passed a law which states you can only resell tickets at face value. I'm sure there are some scalpers still but I can't recall reading about it in the news the way I did before the law.
    - llsf 4mo ago
      Maybe that is what we need in US too. Matt Haney is trying to do something with AB 1720 (Resale Price Cap), and Ticketmaster is supporting it. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1720 https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml... I am not sure why a bill would set some magic and arbitrary percentage other than 0%. This has likely be negotiated with the industry.
      - 4mo ago
seanmcdirmid 4mo ago
> Ticketmaster avoided the two-sided market problem until they reached scale. They were just a website where you buy tickets, an IT appliance for promoters. Ticketmaster had scale before the internet was really a thing. They had a box offices at record stores (Like Tower records) where you could book tickets.
wrsh07 4mo ago
I expect ticketmaster has what should by any reasonable court be deemed illegal contracts that prevent venues from hosting non blessed artists and artists from frequenting non blessed venues, and this type of contract lets them maintain their monopoly

skeptrune 4mo ago

Well put

swader999 4mo ago

Fixed the last sentence for you: "This kind of situation is exactly why lobbying exists"

stephenhuey 4mo ago

Just tried searching for a long-form article I read in recent years. Wish I could find it, but obviously the facts are not a secret. It explained in depth all the problems with the monopoly, but it also pointed out something very surprising to me. A few artists have spoken out angrily on behalf of their fans. However, the fact is, the artists in general do financially benefit from Ticketmaster's way of doing things. Part of Ticketmaster's business model is taking the heat from the fans who don't like paying all the extra fees so that the anger is not directed at the artists. If an artist wants to set the floor at $150 but knows fans might be upset, they can drop the price 30% and TicketMaster can help them make up the difference in fees, and Ticketmaster has nothing to lose. The artists get to keep their reputation intact instead of appearing greedy to fans.

manwe150 4mo ago
Was it possibly actually a podcast? https://www.npr.org/2025/10/23/nx-s1-5582775/are-concert-tickets-under-priced https://www.npr.org/2025/10/23/nx-s1-5582775/are-concert-tic...
- stephenhuey 4mo ago
  You know what? Might have been Freakonomics: https://freakonomics.com/podcast/why-is-the-live-event-ticket-market-so-screwed-up/ https://freakonomics.com/podcast/why-is-the-live-event-ticke...
- anitil 4mo ago
  I remember a Planet Money episode, but I can't find it now. Maybe it was NPR instead
wilkommen 4mo ago
Could it be this podcast? https://www.organizedmoney.fm/p/emergency-pod-the-live-nation-ticketmaster https://www.organizedmoney.fm/p/emergency-pod-the-live-natio...
gamblor956 4mo ago
If an artist wants to set the floor at $150 but knows fans might be upset, they can drop the price 30% and TicketMaster can help them make up the difference in fees, and Ticketmaster has nothing to lose. The artists get to keep their reputation intact instead of appearing greedy to fans This myth keeps getting promulgated and it's just that: a myth. The podcast was wrong about how the music industry actually works. Venues and promoters set the ticket prices, not the artists. The artists get a fixed fee for their performances, and may get a bonus if a certain % of tickets are sold. Even artists on tours don't get to choose the ticket prices. They can ask nicely, but ultimately the promoter decides.
- pxx 4mo ago
  Do you have evidence for your claims?

quantumwoke 4mo ago

[flagged]

cdelsolar 4mo ago
Because he wants to
ryukoposting 4mo ago
I didn't?
samplatt 4mo ago
Your AI-detector needs a calibrate, I think. What made you think it was llm-written?

mixdup 4mo ago

There were local ticket operations across the US, ticketmaster just bought them all up

llsf 4mo ago

Agree... and not defending Ticketmaster, but regarding scalpers in general, I am not sure why one would blame only the ticketing system. If the artists are willing to say sell tickets for $50.00 and the demand is such that some resell to $400.00 the same seat. Is it the fault of the ticketing system ? Who is the victim ? - The artist who could have make more money (but then they could have price it better) - The fans who are basically competing to see that show ? Scalpers are optimizing the market. Maybe the solution to mitigate scalpers would be for ticket holders to only be able to resell their tickets through the same platform. Then the artist could decide if the fans can resell to the platform at face value, or for a profit. Then the artist could decide if the ticket can be sold by the platform with a markup or not. Basically given the power and control to the artist.

KingFelix 4mo ago
The cure did this, we got tickets a few days before the shore, bought from reseller directly through ticket master but they could only be relisted at face value, got 8th for $75 I think, it was a great show
- magicalhippo 4mo ago
  Here in Norway they passed a law which states you can only resell tickets at face value. I'm sure there are some scalpers still but I can't recall reading about it in the news the way I did before the law.
  - llsf 4mo ago
    Maybe that is what we need in US too. Matt Haney is trying to do something with AB 1720 (Resale Price Cap), and Ticketmaster is supporting it. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1720 https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml... I am not sure why a bill would set some magic and arbitrary percentage other than 0%. This has likely be negotiated with the industry.
    - 4mo ago

seanmcdirmid 4mo ago

> Ticketmaster avoided the two-sided market problem until they reached scale. They were just a website where you buy tickets, an IT appliance for promoters. Ticketmaster had scale before the internet was really a thing. They had a box offices at record stores (Like Tower records) where you could book tickets.

wrsh07 4mo ago

I expect ticketmaster has what should by any reasonable court be deemed illegal contracts that prevent venues from hosting non blessed artists and artists from frequenting non blessed venues, and this type of contract lets them maintain their monopoly