Ticketmaster's Platinum Pricing policy was allegedly implemented to "give fans fair and safe access to some of the best seats in the house." While this seems like a fair rule, it now operates to block lower-income fans from enjoying the artists they love. According to Ticketmaster, Platinum Pricing enables a market system where tickets are priced according to demand so that the "most passionate" fans have access to them.
This sounds like a fair rule until you view the prices of the tickets. Unfortunately, this policy only means that the most wealthy fans have access to them. In Section 213 at Madison Square Garden, Harry Styles' concert tickets were priced at face value at $83.50 in the presale. The next day, in general sale, they were priced upwards of $450--a 500% increase--not including later fees. Tickets in the upper house that are meant to be cheap now have unaffordable prices due to the Platinum Pricing policy. In an even more egregious example, pit tickets have increased to $1,050 per ticket, a price that some people pay for rent.
There has been no evidence to suggest that this policy protects fans' tickets from scalpers or bots; if anything, this encourages those entities. Scalpers can buy these tickets at expensive prices and resell them for even worse until the only tickets available are unaffordable in all places. The only fans who have access to these tickets are wealthy. Of course, this benefits Ticketmaster because it means they can profit off of fans using this system and gain the maximum amount of profit.
Ending Platinum Pricing means that lower-income fans can enjoy viewing their favorite artists or sports teams at venues that use Ticketmaster, creating a more equitable system. If Ticketmaster wants to protect fans from scalpers and bots, they must strengthen their platform--not charge fans unaffordable amounts over 500% over face value. Sign this petition to demonstrate to Ticketmaster the wishes of their users.
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