Is The U.S. Justice Department Going To Investigate Ticketmaster?
The New York Times is reporting that the United States Justice Department has opened an investigation into Live Nation, the company that owns Ticketmaster. They’re investigating whether or not Live…
MIAMI, FLORIDA – NOVEMBER 18: : In this photo illustration, A ticketmaster website is shown on a computer screen on November 18, 2022 in Miami, Florida. The Justice Department is reportedly investigating the parent company of Ticketmaster for possible antitrust violations, this follows the news that Taylor Swift concert ticket sales overwhelmed the Ticketmaster system.
(Photo illustration by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)The New York Times is reporting that the United States Justice Department has opened an investigation into Live Nation, the company that owns Ticketmaster. They're investigating whether or not Live Nation has abused its power over the live music industry. This comes following the debacle around Taylor Swift's ticket pre-sale yesterday.
The Times reports that members of the antitrust division’s staff at the Justice Department have contacted music venues, asking about Live Nation’s practices. This is the latest scrutiny of Live Nation Entertainment. Live Nation is a product of the merger between the concert promoter Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The Justice Department approved the merger in 2010. Part of the terms of the deal were that Live Nation could not threaten concert venues if they used ticket agents other than Ticketmaster. That clause was set to expire in 2020.
However, in 2019, the Justice Department found that Live Nation repeatedly violated this clause. They then extended the terms of that rule through 2025. Apparently now members of the Justice Department are questioning whether the company is complying.
A blog post by Ticketmaster claimed that 3.5 million fans registered for pre-sale tickets for Taylor Swift's highly anticipated tour through Ticketmaster's "Verified Fan" system. They “invited” 1.5 million of those customers to the presale by sending them codes. The remaining two million were placed on a waiting list. That blog post was published on Thursday but Ticketmaster soon deleted it.
Apparently, the 3.5 billion system requests caused its app to crash for many users. Some of them were actually in the process of buying tickets with their codes when it happened. So they were unable to complete their transactions. According to Ticketmaster, two million tickets were sold on Tuesday alone. There was also Capital One cardholders presale held on Wednesday. By Thursday, Ticketmaster announced that they canceled Friday's public onsale. It's unclear how many, if any, tickets have not been sold.
On Friday, Swift publicly criticized Ticketmaster on her Instagram account, saying, "There are a multitude of reasons why people had such a hard time trying to get tickets and I'm trying to figure out how this situation can be improved moving forward. I'm not going to make excuses for anyone because we asked them multiple times, if they could handle this kind of demand and we were assured they could. It's truly amazing that 2.4 million people got tickets, but it really pisses me off that a lot of them feel like they went through several bear attacks to get them."
It's worth noting that, according to speculation, there are other highly anticipated tours set to be announced in the coming months by both Rihanna and Beyonce.
Taylor Swift’s 20 Best Breakup Lines
Taylor Swift turns 34 today (December 13), and in honor of the hit songstress' big day, we compiled our favorite lyrics by the queen of breakup songs.
20. Death By A Thousand Cuts
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images"Saying goodbye is death by a thousand cuts / Flashbacks waking me up / I get drunk, but it's not enough / 'Cause the morning comes and you're not my baby."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
19. the 1
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images"I guess you never know, never know / And if you wanted me, you really should've showed / And if you never bleed, you're never gonna grow."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
18. Closure
Kevin Winter/Getty Images"Don't treat me like / Some situation that needs to be handled / I'm fine with my spite / And my tears, and my beers and my candles."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
17. Blank Space
Kevin Winter/Getty Images"So it's gonna be forever / Or it's gonna go down in flames / You can tell me when it's over / If the high was worth the pain."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
16. All You Had To Do Was Stay
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images"The more I think about it now the less I know / All I know is that you drove us off the road."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
15. I Knew You Were Trouble
Craig Barritt/Getty Images"No apologies, he'll never see you cry / Pretends he doesn't know that he's the reason why / You're drowning, you're drowning, you're drowning."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
14. I Wish You Would
Christopher Polk/Getty Images"I wish you would come back / Wish I'd never hung up the phone like I did / I wish you knew that / I'd never forget you as long as I'd live."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
13. All Too Well
Kevin Winter/Getty Images"And you call me up again just to break me like a promise / So casually cruel in the name of being honest."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
12. Red
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images"Losing him was blue, like I'd never known / Missing him was dark gray, all alone / Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met / But loving him was red."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
11. this is me trying
Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images"And it's hard to be at a party / When I feel like an open wound / It's hard to be anywhere these days / When all I want is you."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
10. The Story Of Us
Sascha Steinbach/Getty Images"I used to know my place was a spot next to you / Now I'm searching the room for an empty seat / 'Cause lately I don't even know what page you're on."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
9. Holy Ground
Kevin Winter/Getty Images"And I guess we fell apart in the usual way / And the story's got dust on every page / But sometimes I wonder how you think about it now / And I see your face in every crowd."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
8. august
Kevin Winter/Getty Images"And I can see us twisted in bedsheets / August sipped away like a bottle of wine / 'Cause you were never mine."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
7. Forever & Always
Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images"And I stare at the phone, he still hasn't called / And then you feel so low you can't feel nothing at all / And you flashback to when he said, 'Forever and always.'"
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
6. my tears ricochet
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images"Didn't have it in myself to go with grace / And you're the hero flying around, saving face / And if I'm dead to you, why are you at the wake?"
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
5. Picture To Burn
Graham Denholm/Getty Images"So watch me strike a match on all my wasted time / As far as I'm concerned, you're just another picture to burn."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
4. exile
Mike Coppola/Getty Images"I think I've seen this film before / And I didn't like the ending / You're not my homeland anymore / So what am I defendin' now?"
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
3. I Forgot That You Existed
Graham Denholm/Getty Images"Your name on my lips, tongue tied / Free rent, livin' in my mind / But then something happened one magical night / I forgot that you existed."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
2. You're Not Sorry
Christopher Polk/Getty Images"You got your share of secrets, and I'm tired of being last to know."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
1. White Horse
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images"I was a dreamer before you went and let me down."
Taylor Swift's 20 Best Breakup Lines
