Ticketmaster is the leading ticket sales and distribution company in the live entertainment industry. They sell tickets for concerts, sports events, theaters, and more. Though they face some competition, Ticketmaster holds a dominant position in the primary ticket sales market.
Ticketmaster’s Market Share
According to various estimates, Ticketmaster controls 70-80% of the primary event ticket market in the United States. This means that for the majority of major concerts, sporting events, and live entertainment, Ticketmaster is the exclusive seller of the tickets. They have exclusive contracts with many of the major venues and promoters across the country.
Some key facts about Ticketmaster’s market share:
- They sell over 485 million tickets per year worldwide.
- They have contracts with over 11,000 venues, promoters, sports leagues, and event organizers.
- In 2021, Ticketmaster sold 114 million tickets just for concerts in North America.
- For major sporting events, Ticketmaster often controls 80-90% of the ticket inventory.
- They sold 61% of all NFL tickets and 76% of MLB tickets in recent years.
While exact market share percentages vary year-to-year, it’s clear that Ticketmaster dominates the majority of major live entertainment ticketing markets. Their size, brand recognition, and exclusive contracts make them the go-to place for most primary ticket sales.
Ticketmaster’s Competition
Though Ticketmaster is the dominant player, they do face some competition in ticketing sales:
- AXS – Owned by AEG, one of the largest concert promoters, AXS sells tickets for many AEG venues and events. They are Ticketmaster’s chief competitor.
- StubHub – The largest secondary ticket exchange, where resellers can sell event tickets at marked up prices.
- Vivid Seats – Similar secondary ticket marketplace as StubHub.
- SeatGeek – An aggregator for both primary and secondary ticket sales.
- Eventbrite – Platform for smaller event organizers to handle ticketing and registration.
However, none of these other ticketing companies come close to Ticketmaster’s reach and scale. AXS handles a fraction of the major events, while the secondary exchanges don’t compete for the same exclusive primary ticket deals. Smaller competitors like Eventbrite also focus on niche markets that Ticketmaster doesn’t cover as heavily.
Reasons for Ticketmaster’s Market Dominance
There are several key reasons why Ticketmaster has maintained such a controlling share of the primary ticket sales market:
- Exclusive contracts – Ticketmaster secures long-term ticketing deals (often 5-10 years) with major venues, sports leagues, promoters, and event organizers. This shuts out competitors from huge portions of inventory.
- Mergers and acquisitions – Buying up competitors like Ticketron and Paciolan has eliminated challengers over the years.
- Advanced technology – Massive investments in software and analytics gives Ticketmaster a sophisticated ticketing system.
- Consumer reach – With over 60 websites covering 28 languages, Ticketmaster has unrivaled global reach to consumers.
- Strong brand recognition – Most consumers see Ticketmaster as the go-to place for tickets, which becomes a self-fulfilling cycle.
Ticketmaster’s dominance developed over decades through aggressive business tactics, mergers, and billion-dollar investments in technology. Their scale and infrastructure is virtually impossible for any newcomer to replicate. These high barriers to entry maintain Ticketmaster’s commanding market share.
Ongoing Antitrust Concerns
Given their dominant position, Ticketmaster has faced antitrust scrutiny and legal challenges over anti-competitive behavior. They’ve paid millions in fines and settlements over issues like:
- Excessive service fees that dramatically raise ticket prices.
- Pressuring venues to give them exclusive deals.
- Acquiring competitor companies to weaken competition.
- Misleading consumers about ticket availability.
Despite lawsuits and criticism, Ticketmaster maintains their hold on the market. Their exclusive deals make it impossible for competitors to gain ground. As long as Ticketmaster continues securing long-term contracts with major promoters and venues, no other primary ticketing company stands much chance of reducing their market share.
Conclusion
With around 70-80% market share in primary ticket sales, Ticketmaster is undoubtedly the dominant player in the event ticketing industry. Their size, aggressive tactics, advanced technology, and brand recognition make significant erosion of their market position unlikely in the near future. While competitors nip at their heels, Ticketmaster’s multidecade head start and trillion-dollar backing from Live Nation media conglomerate keep them entrenched as the #1 place most consumers buy tickets from.