Ticketmaster, SeatGeek to get rid of hidden fees on ticket sales

Live event ticketing company Ticketmaster and ticket resale company SeatGeek were two of several companies that have pledged to get rid of hidden fees for their services. The pledges are part of a Biden administration effort to crack down on so-called “junk fees.”

“These hidden charges to companies sneak into your bill to make you pay more without you really knowing it initially. Junk fees are not a matter for the wealthy very much, but they’re a matter for working folks like the homes I grew up in,” President Joe Biden said at a White House meeting with representatives from Ticketmaster, SeatGeek and other companies. “And they can add hundreds of dollars a month and make it harder for families to pay their bills. I think it’s just wrong.”

According to the White House, SeatGeek “will roll out product features over the course of the summer to make it easier for its millions of customers to shop on the basis of all-in price.” Live Nation, the parent company for Ticketmaster, is expected to introduce all-in pricing in September.

“Live Nation is proud to provide fans with a better ticket buying experience,” Tom See, the president of Live Nation’s concert venue operations, said in a statement. “We have thousands of crew working behind the scenes every day to help artists share their music live with fans, and we’ll continue advocating for innovations and reforms that protect that amazing connection.”

The only other major company joining President Biden at the White House on Thursday, June 15, was vacation rental company Airbnb. According to the White House, Airbnb introduced a total price display tool that allows consumers to see all fees before taxes in December 2022.

“Since then, more than 8 million visitors have taken advantage of the tool to view fee-inclusive pricing,” the White House said.

Pledges from Ticketmaster and SeatGeek regarding hidden fees comes as the former is still facing allegations of anticompetitive practices. The Break Up Ticketmaster Coalition responded to the company’s pledge by saying it still needed to be broken up to stop “exorbitant fees on top of the actual ticket, with multiple reports of fees that cost more than a ticket itself.”