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The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), joined by attorneys general from seven states (Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia), recently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Live Nation Entertainment and its ticketing arm Ticketmaster. Yes, the FTC is suing Ticketmaster.
The FTC is suing Ticket Master and Live Nation, accusing the juggernauts of multiple deceptive and unfair practices that raise both consumer protection and antitrust concerns. Among the key allegations mentioned in the FTC news release:
- Ticketmaster allegedly allowed or turned a blind eye to brokers using fake or multiple accounts. These accounts may have been used to bypass limits on how many tickets any one buyer (including brokers) could purchase for high-demand events. This enables mass purchases, which are then resold at steep markups.
- The FTC says Ticketmaster failed to disclose the full cost of tickets up front,. Instead, hiding many mandatory fees until late in the checkout process. Some of these fees can reach up to 44% of the advertised base ticket price.
- The FTC alleges that Ticketmaster profits at multiple steps. These are the monies gather from primary ticket sales, from brokers buying those tickets, and then again from resale fees.
- The lawsuit claims that internal communications show senior executives acknowledged these broker violations (buying beyond posted limits, bypassing enforcement). The lawsuit alleges that sometimes executives declined effective technological safeguards because doing otherwise would cut into revenue.
Legal Basis & Laws Allegedly Violated
- The Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, which bans using bots or other means to bypass ticket purchasing limits set by the event promoter or venue.
- Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in commerce.
- Various state consumer protection laws in the states joining the suit.
According to FTC figures in the complaint, between 2019 and 2024, Ticketmaster customers paid $16.4 billion in mandatory fees. Allegedly, Ticketmaster collected $11+ billion in revenue just from those fees during that time. Ticketmaster is said to control over 80% of primary ticketing for major U.S. venues.
FTC is Suing Ticketmaster, so What’s Next?
If the court rules against Ticketmaster/Live Nation, they could face civil penalties, required changes to practices, more transparent pricing, and possibly restrictions on resale and enforcement of purchase limits.
It may force Ticketmaster to show all fees upfront. Ticketmaster could also be required to crack down on brokers and fake accounts. Further steps may include useing stricter identity verification, and possibly deploy technology to enforce limits more rigorously.
For consumers, the suit could lead to somewhat lower costs (fewer markups, fewer hidden fees) and fairer access to tickets. But since Live Nation and Ticketmaster are major players in live entertainment infrastructure, any regulatory changes could have broader ripple effects. This may well effect how tickets are sold, how artists/promoters work with platforms, and how resale markets are governed.
Regarding the lawsuit where the FTC is suing Ticketmaster, neither Ticketmaster nor Live Nation immediately responded to media requests for comment.
Donielle Flynn has two kids, two cats, two dogs, and a love of all things rock. She’s been in radio decades and held down top-rated day parts at Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington DC radio stations throughout her tenure. She enjoys writing about rock news, the Detroit community, and she has a series called “The Story Behind” where she researches the history of classic rock songs.
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Donielle Flynn
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