Industry News

Ticketmaster free voucher giveaway under fire

Ticketmaster has faced a fresh round of criticism in North America over free vouchers it was forced to distribute as part of a legal settlement.

Last month, the operator sent out a total of 329 million vouchers to 57 million people, as part of a settlement of a class-action lawsuit, which alleged that Ticketmaster was not forthright in conveying how it profits off UPS and order processing fees.

The vouchers sent out were worth $15m of the total $42m, which Ticketmaster agreed to return to customers. However, restrictions relating to the coupons mean they are only usable at what many recipients deem to be undesirable events.

“The good news is we all have free Ticketmaster vouchers,” one Twitter user wrote. “The bad news is they’re only valid for concerts you wouldn’t even go to for free.” Late Show host Stephen Colbert (pictured) also mocked the giveaway’s selection of shows.

According to a report in the USA Today newspaper, free tickets are only available at venues owned and operated by Live Nation Entertainment, which owns Ticketmaster.

The report said: “The company does not own any stadiums or arenas in the USA, meaning that its selection of voucher-eligible shows has been limited to its 42 amphitheatres and a handful of clubs and theatres, most of which are located in small towns and suburbs of major cities.”

Meanwhile, an expert in ticketing has claimed that Ticketmaster and its rivals are not giving fans a fair chance of buying tickets to see their favourite artists, shows and events.

Professor Pascal Courty, from the University of Victoria Economics, told the Yahoo Canada news service that while the company admits that it sets aside some seats for artists and earns money on the secondary market, it is unknown what percentage of tickets are available through primary sales.

Courty said: “Typically, they’re going to keep a lot of the best seats of the venue and these seats will be sold through different channels and it will end up on the secondary market.”

Posted in Industry News