Getting Answers: problems with ticket sales for Taylor Swift’s concerts

SPRINGFIELD, MA (WGGB/WSHM) - Taylor Swift will take the stage at Gillette Stadium this weekend as part of her highly anticipated ‘Eras’ tour, but even with three sold-out shows, there are still many Swifties who couldn’t get their hands on tickets.

“Ticketmaster was blaming everyone except Ticketmaster and I said look in the mirror and say ‘I’m the problem, it’s me,’” said U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.

Chaos erupted when tickets for Swift’s tour went up for sale. Ticketmaster faced what they called an “unprecedented demand” as millions of fans tried to survive the great war to get their hands on tickets. Some lucky Swifties, who were considered Ticketmaster verified fans, received access codes for the presale. Those fans were told to click the link at 10 a.m. and it appeared you were out of the woods, but it wasn’t that simple.

“We weren’t able to get tickets the day of the presale, even though we had the code and everything,” said Rylee Lachat.

Millions of fans, just like Lachat, know that feeling all too well. Ticketmaster addressed the overload and said they were urgently working to resolve the issue, but problems only continued.

“We got in a couple times and it would say we had tickets in the cart and then it would just fall through and we would get kicked out,” Lachat noted.

Ticketmaster went on to entirely cancel the general sale of ‘Eras’ tour tickets, prompting bad blood from even swift herself. The singer took to Instagram and slammed the ticket agency and said her trust was broken.

“Taylor Swift has been very clear in her very strong criticism of Ticketmaster. Taylor Swift has been a champion of her fans,” Blumenthal added.

That criticism has reached Capitol Hill when U.S. Senators grilled top officials of Ticketmaster’s parent company, Live Nation, two months after the sale. Blumenthal had a front row seat as the Judiciary Committee called the two company’s merger a monopoly and asked the Department of Justice to investigate.

“What we want to do is eliminate the lock that Live Nation has on the venues. It controls about 70 to 80 percent of all of the venues, which means it can say to the venues ‘use Ticketmaster or you get no artists,’” Blumenthal explained.

On Monday, Blumental announced new bipartisan legislation to address this issue, the Unlock Ticketing Markets Act, which is aimed at getting rid of those exclusive venue contracts.

While Ticketmaster officials blamed the Swift ticket fiasco on the increased number of bots, Blumenthal told Western Mass News this is not a new issue. Lawmakers have been calling for change for years now. The ‘Eras’ tour simply brought the issues to daylight.

“There are hidden fees, higher prices, more difficult access. That’s the result of monopolistic control by Ticketmaster over not only sales of tickets, but the venues…Artists, consumers, concert goers, everyone is short changed by this system,” Blumenthal added.

Right now, when you go to ticketmaster.com and select your show, you see what appears to be the price you would be paying for tickets. However, when you select your seats, put your tickets in the cart, and proceed to checkout, that number jumps up.

“With this bill, it doesn’t stop companies from adding those fees. It just gives the consumer the information right away,” said State Representative Daniel Carey.

Carey filed “The Act Ensuring Transparent Ticket Pricing” this past January and he said thanks to the recent Ticketmaster debacle, his bill is getting added attention.

“The timing just kind of worked lined up. I didn’t file it because of Taylor Swift, but I’ve heard from a lot of Taylor Swift fans since I filed this and it wouldn’t make it any easier to get a ticket, but it would reduce some of the headaches as far as clicking through those websites and trying to decide which tickets to buy and how much those tickets cost and where that money is going,” Carey explained.

The state bill would not only apply to concerts, but also plays and sporting events as well. However, for Lachat and her 13-year-old daughter, they’re going to shake off their Ticketmaster experience and enjoy the show.

“We’re behind the stage, so I don’t know how much we’ll actually see, but at least we’re going…I’m sure it will be worth it and we’re excited,” Lachat said.

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