Live Nation and Ticketmaster are revamping their sites to allow consumers to see the total cost of event tickets before they get to checkout instead of adding fees at the end of the process.
Live Nation Entertainment — made up of Live Nation and Ticketmaster — is doing away with unexpected"junk fees" amid pressure from frustrated concertgoers and President Joe Biden. The fees made tickets more expensive than they were listed for online, and Biden invited representatives from Live Nation and other platforms with similar fees — like SeatGeek — to a meeting on Thursday.
Prior to the meeting, both Live Nation and SeatGeek agreed to show any additional fees up front during ticket purchases. Consumers can expect the change to be fully in effect by September,"Today's voluntary actions demonstrate that companies both big and small recognize the importance of providing consumers with honest, up-front all-in pricing, rather than tricking them with surprise fees at the end of checkout," the White Houseon Thursday.
Ticketmaster has previously found itself in hot water with fans of musicians like Taylor Swift, Drake, and The Cure after complaints of exorbitant fees driving up the costs of tickets. The bungling ofIn March, the platform agreed to refund fans "unduly fees" for tickets to see The Cure after