1/ A few days ago, the pop star Bad Bunny (@sanbenito) sent out an urgent tweet about upcoming concert dates. “THE TICKETS FOR MY TOUR ARE NOT AVAILABLE YET!!” he wrote in Spanish.
There’s a valuable lesson here about how fans end up feeling duped buying tickets.
There’s a valuable lesson here about how fans end up feeling duped buying tickets.
https://twitter.com/sanbenito/status/1382029196726312961
2/ In March, we published an investigation into the secondary ticket market for live events.
In it, @byardduncan dug into so-called “speculative tickets.” revealnews.org/article/how-is…
In it, @byardduncan dug into so-called “speculative tickets.” revealnews.org/article/how-is…
3/ The official on-sale date for @sanbenito’s upcoming “El Último Tour del Mundo” is today.
Like, right now.
That’s when you can get so-called “primary market” tickets from Ticketmaster.
Like, right now.
That’s when you can get so-called “primary market” tickets from Ticketmaster.
4/ But if that’s the case, then why have @sanbenito fans been complaining on @Twitter all week about high prices? ...
https://twitter.com/bastluigi/status/1382849772155899905
5/ … And about resellers making a serious profit before the tickets are even officially on sale?
https://twitter.com/angelorod50/status/1383098230028705792
6/ One possible answer: These could be speculative tickets.
Brokers often sell inventory on resale marketplaces like @vividseats that *they don’t have yet.*
Brokers often sell inventory on resale marketplaces like @vividseats that *they don’t have yet.*
7/ There have been a lot of efforts to crack down on this practice.
Most notably, the New York Attorney General sued a reseller called @ticketnetwork over speculative tickets a few years ago: ag.ny.gov/press-release/…
Most notably, the New York Attorney General sued a reseller called @ticketnetwork over speculative tickets a few years ago: ag.ny.gov/press-release/…
8/ And yet, @sanbenito is out here warning fans that “LOS PRECIOS Y SECCIONES QUE ESTAN POR AHÍ NO SON REALES.” – “The prices and sections that are there aren’t real.”
9/ It’s hard to know for sure whether resellers’ Bad Bunny tickets are speculative.
But you can definitely look for red flags. Let’s go to @ticketnetwork’s listings for examples.
But you can definitely look for red flags. Let’s go to @ticketnetwork’s listings for examples.
10/ Red flag 1: High-priced seats available for sale before the artist’s official on-sale date. (This screenshot is from earlier this morning – *before* tickets in San Jose went on sale.)
11/ Red flag 2: Disclosures warning that “the seller has not yet received your tickets,” like this:
12/ Red flag 3: Language like this, tucked into a site’s terms and conditions: 👇👇
13/ Most consumers don’t know that sometimes they’re not actually buying a ticket – they’re buying a broker’s promise that he’ll try to get the ticket once he already has your money.
Sometimes, the ticket never materializes, and the fan is on the hook for hotel and airfare.
Sometimes, the ticket never materializes, and the fan is on the hook for hotel and airfare.
14/ This practice frustrates fans. Clearly, it also seems to frustrate @sanbenito.
15/ It vexes regulators, too.
Acting @FTC Chair @RKSlaughterFTC told us that speculative selling “has been the topic of enforcement attention for a decade, and the problem is still there. So it is clear that more needs to happen.”
Acting @FTC Chair @RKSlaughterFTC told us that speculative selling “has been the topic of enforcement attention for a decade, and the problem is still there. So it is clear that more needs to happen.”
16/ To learn more about this issue, check out “The Ticket Trap,” our recent episode that explains how the secondary ticket market works – and why regulations have fallen short. revealnews.org/podcast/the-ti…
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