There probably are good things about Ticketmaster, given the fact that it incentivizes artists to use the platform. It is the most well-known and used platform to buy tickets for big events, despite people complaining about it, it’s what they still turn to at the end of the day. But what is wrong with Ticketmaster? Some main problems with the site are hidden fees and it being glitchy, and dropping people who were slowly inching their way up the queue to the very end of the massive line, for no reason. Despite the pros of a smooth delivery, secureness, and reliability, most are still unhappy with Ticketmaster, calling it the “Great Ticketmaster War.”
Ella Swank, a freshman at UNO won the “Great Ticketmaster War,” after much frustration and time waiting in the queue for Taylor Swift tickets.
“It was pure luck,” Swank said. “I feel really grateful.”
Despite being successful in securing tickets, Swank was still unhappy with all of the fees.
“I understand that there needs to be extra fees, but hiding them is just plain wrong,” Swank said.
The Zach Bryan presale had similar issues to the Eras Tour. Senior Jordyn Wissing unfortunately lost the “Great Ticketmaster War.”
“It was devastating,” Wissing said. “Zach Bryan is my favorite artist, and now I might not be able to see him perform.”
Recently, artists Zach Bryan and Taylor Swift have publicly criticized Ticketmaster because of the multitude of problems. However, Ticketmaster is likely to stick around due to many venues requiring artists to use the platform to sell tickets. The incentive for venues to do this comes from the direct profit of the “facility charge,” which is one of the hidden fees of Ticketmaster. Platforms such as StubHub and SeatGeek are often used by resellers, and people turn to these sites if they’re having trouble with Ticketmaster. Both sites are mostly reliable and secure but have yet to establish trust with venues and artists like Ticketmaster has, therefore making Ticketmaster the default, and world’s largest platform for ticket sales.
