[ [link removed] ]Sign the petition to tell the Department of Justice and the Federal
Trade Commission to investigate Ticketmaster's monopoly and dynamic fees!

Dear MoveOn member,

Earlier this week tickets for Taylor Swift's tour went on sale. Maybe at
this point you're thinking, "What does that have to do with me?" Stay
tuned, dear reader! The fact that fans couldn't buy tickets and that the
sale had to stop while secondary markets were price-gouging is a direct
result of Ticketmaster's unchecked, concentrated monopoly power—and that's
why we need government action to help consumers and artists. 

Due to the merger between Live Nation and Ticketmaster in 2010—one that
experts say should've never happened because it gives Ticketmaster such a
stranglehold on the market—one company now controls about 70% of the
ticketing and live venue market.^1 [ [link removed] ]The move impacts every corner of the
music ecosystem, cuts deeply into artists' earnings, drives up exorbitant
fees for consumers, and negatively impacts how much venues take in.^2 Ever
since then, tickets have been steadily rising in cost, coupled with fees
and a flawed user experience that leaves working people less likely to
want to partake in the experience again.^3 At a time when technology in
general is getting better and cheaper, these bad experiences and high
costs are the result of Ticketmaster's monopolistic power.^ 

Ticketmaster is an unchecked monopoly that benefits from being one of the
only reliable companies that people can go to online to purchase tickets
for concerts and shows across the country. Without fair competition, they
can abuse artists, venues, and consumers. [ [link removed] ]They're concerned only about
their bottom line, and without intervention, Ticketmaster will continue to
thrive in a system that cuts out and disenfranchises people who just want
to see their favorite band, artist, or musical live.

Activists, organizers, and artists have been calling for the breakup of
Ticketmaster for years. Tell the Department of Justice and the Federal
Trade Commission to investigate and break up Ticketmaster.

[4]Sign the petition!

The only winners in this situation are Ticketmaster and corporations.
Consumers have seen the worst from the site in the past few days:
excessive wait times and expensive, unreasonable, and unjustified fees
that Ticketmaster would quite frankly never charge if there were other
companies to keep them in check. And it will only get worse if they're not
investigated now.

Monopolies cause chaos for us and for the economy.^4 But it does not have
to be this way. It's time to break up Ticketmaster, but the Department of
Justice and the Federal Trade Commission will take action only if they
know how Ticketmaster has failed people across the country. [ [link removed] ]Click here
to add your name to this petition, and then pass it along to your friends.

Thanks for all you do.

–Nakia, Amy, Madeleine, Alexis, and the rest of the team

Sources: 

1. "Can The Power Of Taylor Swift—And Her Fanbase—Finally Topple
Ticketmaster’s Monopoly," Forbes, November 17, 2022
[link removed]

2. "Bruce Springsteen 'Furious' At Ticketmaster, Rails Against Live Nation
Merger," Rolling Stone, February 4, 2009. 
[link removed]

3. "How Concert Tickets Got So Expensive and Who All Those Fees Benefit,"
NBC Los Angeles, April 8, 2022
[link removed]

4. "Do Monopolies Actually Benefit Consumers," Chicago Booth Review,
October 13, 2021
[link removed]

You're receiving this petition because we thought it might interest you.
It was created on MoveOn.org, where anyone can start their own online
petitions. You can [ [link removed] ]start your own petition here.

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