FTC And States Sue Ticketmaster Alleging Consumer Deception And Profiteering

The US Federal Trade Commission and seven states filed a lawsuit Thursday against Live Nation Entertainment and its Ticketmaster unit, according to Bloomberg. The FTC alleged Ticketmaster failed to enforce ticket limits and ignored brokers who bypassed them because the company profited from resales. The FTC also said that Ticketmaster misrepresented ticket availability and deceived consumers with hidden fees, allowing brokers to bypass limits and resell tickets at steep markups. Regulators allege Ticketmaster “triple dipped” by collecting fees on both original and resale transactions, totaling $11 billion between 2019 and 2024. The FTC increased its scrutiny of ticket sales after a Trump administration order in March directed it to prioritize Better Online Ticket Sales Act enforcement.