Events

President Biden calls for limits on concert and sporting ticket fees

Featured image credit: Lukas Bato on Unsplash

US President Joe Biden has called on Ticketmaster and other companies to lower service fees which are often added to tickets for concerts or sporting events. 

The President met with the Competition Council yesterday (Wednesday) and promoted his ‘Junk Fee Prevention Act’.

This Act would also include restrictions on early cancellation charges imposed by TV, cable and internet providers.

After President Biden urged Congress to ban junk fees including on online concert, sporting event and entertainment fees, Protect Ticket Rights welcomed the move.

The initiative, which is run by the National Association of Ticket Brokers (NATB), said: “Protect Ticket Rights applauds President Biden and his Administration for looking out for what’s in the best interest of consumers, including their experience when they purchase live event tickets. We are encouraged by the President’s interest in greater price and fee transparency, and for primary ticketing companies like Ticketmaster to stop hiding the number of tickets being held back to fool consumers into believing tickets are scarce so that they can charge higher prices.

“There needs to be greater transparency when it comes to the opaque live events ticket market, and greater competition at every point in the system; from artist management to tour promotion, venues, and ticketing. With billions of dollars worth of tickets sales each year, mostly into the coffers of a single company, reform that enhances transparency and protects the rights of ticket-holders is critical to fix what is currently broken.”

Gary Adler, executive director and counsel of NATB, added: “We also support President Biden’s desire to end the practice of drip pricing where ‘all-in pricing’ becomes the norm when consumers comparison shop for tickets.

“To better protect consumers, greater transparency in ticketing and throughout the broader live events system is needed. It may come as a surprise to some that ticket brokers support these reforms, but the professional ticketing companies that comprise NATB have long supported a high standard of professional conduct and contributing to the economic welfare of live events by connecting fans with the live events they love. We welcome the opportunity to help the Administration in its desire to improve the live event ticketing system.”