In recent weeks, there has been growing backlash against Ticketmaster from high-profile musical artists over issues with inflated fees and website crashes during presales. One major country artist who has been particularly vocal in their criticism of the ticket sales giant is Eric Church.
Eric Church’s Issues with Ticketmaster
Eric Church is an American country music singer-songwriter who has become one of the genre’s biggest stars over the past decade. He has had multiple #1 albums and singles on the Billboard country charts. Earlier this year, Church announced he would be heading out on a major tour in 2023. However, when tickets went on presale through Ticketmaster in November, there were significant problems.
The presale was plagued by long wait times, website crashes, and sky-high dynamic pricing that resulted in tickets costing several times their face value. Church expressed frustration with Ticketmaster, saying the presale was “unacceptable” and that the system only benefits scalpers. He vowed to find a way to get tickets directly into fans’ hands in the future.
In a social media post, Church specifically called out Ticketmaster’s “dynamic pricing” system which surges prices for high-demand tickets. He said this system “is not fan friendly” and he would not be working with Ticketmaster again if they did not make major changes to address fan concerns.
Eric Church’s Plan to Avoid Ticketmaster
In response to the presale issues, Eric Church and his team went back to the drawing board to find an alternative way to sell tickets for his tour. They devised a plan called “Concert Week” where they will sell $15 general admission lawn tickets each week leading up to the tour, available exclusively through Church’s website.
The plan will give fans multiple opportunities over several weeks to purchase tickets directly. There will be no fees, saving fans hundreds of dollars compared to buying through Ticketmaster. Church said he wanted to give control back to real fans rather than scalpers and third-party sellers.
Church is also requiring ticket buyers to use their Ticketmaster Verified Fan program. This requires fans to register ahead of time and get verified as real fans, not scalpers or bots. The program aims to get more tickets directly into the hands of true fans.
How Ticketmaster Has Responded
Ticketmaster has defended itself in the wake of criticism from Church and other artists like Bruce Springsteen. They claim their dynamic pricing model helps maximize revenue for artists while reflecting supply and demand.
They also say Verified Fan stops 85% of bots from buying tickets but that the system is not perfect. Ticketmaster says they are continuing to work to improve the fan experience. However, they have not directly addressed complaints about fees and presale crashes.
Some industry experts argue Ticketmaster still has little incentive to make major changes as they dominate so much of the live event ticketing landscape. Unless more artists follow Eric Church’s lead, Ticketmaster will likely face minimal impacts.
Other Country Artists Upset with Ticketmaster
Eric Church is not the only major country star who has recently voiced issues with Ticketmaster. Some other examples include:
- Luke Combs – Had website crashes during his 2023 tour presale. Combs said he was working to find ways to prevent scalpers from buying up all the tickets.
- Kane Brown – Brown spoke out after seeing horrendous secondary market prices for his tour tickets on sites like StubHub shortly after they went on presale. He said true fans were getting ripped off.
- Carrie Underwood – Underwood’s upcoming Denim & Rhinestones Tour presale also experienced long wait times and ticket surges up to $1,000+. Underwood said she hopes solutions could be found in the future.
- Miranda Lambert – Also dealt with presale crashes and fake scalper listings for her upcoming tour. Lambert said she wished the process of getting tickets into fans’ hands could be easier.
While not every country artist has been as outspoken as Church, it’s clear many are unhappy and hope changes are on the horizon when it comes to Ticketmaster and the live event ticketing experience.
What Fans Can Do
Upset country fans wondering what they can do have a few options to make their voices heard:
- Contact Ticketmaster directly via email or social media to complain about service fees, crashes, scalpers, etc.
- Call on more artists to follow Eric Church’s lead and find ways to circumvent Ticketmaster when possible.
- Contact elected officials and ask them to investigate Live Nation’s dominance of the ticketing industry.
- Refrain from buying tickets through unofficial third-party sellers, as this further encourages scalpers.
- Be vocal on social media about the issues using hashtags like #TicketmasterBoycott
While Ticketmaster remains the dominant player in event ticketing, if fans make enough noise they may be able to convince artists, teams, and venues to push for more fan-friendly policies when it comes to ticket sales and distribution.
How Other Companies Are Responding
The backlash against Ticketmaster is also highlighting opportunities for other players in the ticketing industry to emerge as viable alternatives. Some examples include:
AXS
AXS is owned by AEG and serves as the ticket sales provider for many AEG-owned venues. It has been trying to take advantage of Ticketmaster’s PR struggles by promoting itself as a fan-friendly option.
AXS has lower fees, does not use surge pricing, and claims over 95% of tickets on its platform go directly to fans. Still, AXS has nowhere near the reach and venue relationships of Ticketmaster.
Soundtix
Soundtix is a startup utilizing mobile technology to offer contactless digital ticketing aimed at eliminating scalping and fraud.
Fans have a ticket directly attached to their mobile wallet that cannot be resold. Soundtix is still small but landing partnerships with independent venues. The contactless aspect is also big in the post-pandemic era.
Universe
Universe is a platform used by some artists like Eric Church to sell tickets directly to fans. It provides full control over pricing and distribution.
However, Universe does not have the resources to handle ticketing for arena-sized tours on its own, so it often must integrate with existing systems.
There is opportunity for companies big and small to provide real fan-friendly alternatives, but time will tell if any can truly rival Ticketmaster’s stronghold, especially for major tours and events.
Conclusion
Eric Church’s public criticism of Ticketmaster is notable coming from such a high-profile country artist. His decision to circumvent Ticketmaster for his tour ticketing highlights the growing discontent among artists, teams, and fans when it comes to Ticketmaster’s fees and policies.
It remains to be seen whether other top country stars will join Church in finding ways to route around Ticketmaster or if fans will heed calls for boycotts or protests of the company.
But Church is certainly not alone in his feelings, as other country artists and genres have echoed similar frustrations. With its dominance of the event ticketing business, Ticketmaster has relatively little incentive to change unless more musical acts unite behind alternatives.
The coming months and tours will demonstrate whether Ticketmaster makes meaningful changes, or if artist and fan frustrations continue to build. But Eric Church is determined to march to the beat of his own drum when it comes to finding a better way for fans to access tickets.