The concert ticket giant Live Nation has come under fire from Senator Richard Blumenthal over its commitment to drop “hidden” ticket fees. On its website, the company had promised customers that fees would be “fully disclosed upfront” and that they would not pay more than the price listed. However, Blumenthal called this promise into question when fan complained that they had been charged more than the listed price.
In response to Blumenthal’s questioning, Live Nation has defended its commitment to transparency, insisting that it is simply following the industry norms. The company also stands by its promise to disclose any fees upfront, noting that the extra fees charged to customers were due to local taxes and processing fees.
Despite Live Nation’s stance, Blumenthal is unsatisfied by the company’s lack of accountability. He believes that Live Nation should uphold its promise and stop charging hidden fees, or at least be culturally sensitive to venues and allow ticket-buying customers to be aware of additional charges prior to purchase. He has called for the company to halt sales of tickets with “hidden fees” until it can provide a complete list of charges.
In the wake of these criticisms, Live Nation is currently deciding whether or not it will make further changes to its price disclosure policies. It remains to be seen whether the company will heed the Senator’s call or continue to charge extra fees to ticker buyers.
