Ticketmaster and the Federal Trade Commission have settled a complaint filed by the federal agency alleging that the event marketing giant used “bait-and-switch” tactics to sell Bruce Springsteen concert tickets, the FTC said today.
Ticketmaster has to pay consumers who bought tickets for 14 Springsteen concerts in 2009 through its ticket resale website, TicketsNow.com, and it has to be “clear about the costs and risks of buying through its reseller sites,” the FTC said.
The FTC charged that Ticketmaster used its highly visited website to steer unknowing consumers to TicketsNow, which bills itself as a resale marketplace for Ticketmaster.
“Buying tickets should not be a game of chance,” said FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz.
The FTC alleges that TicketsNow offered the Springsteen tickets at much higher prices – “in some cases double, triple, or quadruple the face value.” Ticketmaster also displayed the same “misleading” website page to consumers looking for tickets to other events between October 2008 and February 2009.
The FTC said it is sending a warning letter to other ticket resale companies whose practices may violate the law.
One of the most visited e-commerce sites, Ticketmaster.com is the online portion of Ticketmaster Entertainment, the world’s leading concert ticketing and marketing company. It serves more than 10,000 clients, including most concert venues, professional sports franchises and leagues, college sports teams, performing arts venues, museums and theaters.
The FTC also alleges that Ticketmaster failed to tell buyers that many of the resale tickets advertised on TicketsNow.com were not “in hand” – tickets not secured for sale at the time they were listed and bought.
“TicketsNow.com sold phantom tickets without letting consumers know that the tickets did not exist. Then, the company held onto consumers’ money, sometimes for months, when it knew those fans weren’t going to see Springsteen,” Leibowitz said.
FTC provides a website for consumers to file complaints, or you can call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).
