An illustration of a Live Nation Entertainment logo is seen on a smartphone and a pc screen.
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WASHINGTON — Lawmakers introduced a recent bipartisan bill on Thursday targeting ticketing-fee disclosures in an effort to extend transparency within the entertainment industry.
The “Transparency in Charges for Key Events Ticketing Act,” or TICKET Act, is modeled after current promoting guidelines for airline tickets, which require disclosing the complete ticket price before purchase. Reps. Jan Schakowsky, D-In poor health., and Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., are co-sponsoring the bill.
“Fans are incredibly frustrated by how hard it has turn into to purchase event tickets. With every ticketing debacle, from Beyoncé to Taylor Swift, and so many more, their frustration grows,” Schakowsky said in a press release. “Consumers need to be shielded from fraudulent tickets, surprise costs, and excessive fees.”
The bill is a companion to laws introduced by Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, in April. Its release follows a subcommittee hearing on regulating extra surcharges, or “junk fees,” which have turn into a specific focus of the Biden administration.
“The value, they are saying, really must be the value you pay,” Cantwell said through the Thursday hearing. “And that might be added to, however it must be disclosed.”
The House bill mirrors the Senate measure in mandating ticket vendors to display the whole price of a ticket, including all required fees, in any commercial or piece of selling.
An itemized list of the bottom ticket price and associated fees must even be disclosed in the beginning of the acquisition, in line with the bill, and vendors must even be upfront about “speculative” tickets not in the vendor’s possession.
Bilirakis said the bill will bring “much-needed transparency to the entire ticketing industry.”
“There may be nothing more disappointing for an avid fan than being lured into the prospect of a reasonable ticket to see his or her favorite sports team or band only to learn later within the checkout process that the ultimate price tag is significantly higher,” he said, adding that he’s “committed to working towards reforms that protect consumers and supply certainty within the marketplace.”
Schakowsky and Bilirakis cited studies from the Recent York Attorney General’s Office and the Government Accountability Office that show ticketing fees can contribute anywhere from 21% to as much as 58% of the whole cost of tickets.
Ticketing sites and associated fees have come under intense scrutiny in recent months, driven largely by a fumbled Ticketmaster presale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour late last yr. The positioning buckled under overwhelming demand, prompting calls for antitrust motion against parent company Live Nation.
