FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson : Ticketmaster has not been honest about its pricing

Core Viewpoint - The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster for alleged illegal ticket resale practices, claiming that ticketing has become excessively expensive for consumers [1][2]. Group 1: Allegations Against Ticketmaster - The lawsuit alleges that Ticketmaster has been dishonest about ticket pricing, posting initial prices on its website and then increasing fees during the purchase process, which violates the FTC Act [4]. - Ticketmaster is accused of misrepresenting the availability of tickets on the primary market, as brokers have been buying large quantities of tickets, leading to deceptive listings on Ticketmaster's website [5]. - The FTC claims that Ticketmaster allowed brokers to circumvent ticket limit controls, resulting in significant profits for brokers and Ticketmaster through its secondary ticketing platform, which is considered unfair and illegal [6][7]. Group 2: Desired Outcomes from the Lawsuit - The FTC seeks an injunction to prevent Ticketmaster from continuing its alleged deceptive practices that harm consumers [9]. - The FTC aims to recover potentially billions of dollars in illegal profits taken from American consumers by Ticketmaster and return those funds to the consumers [10].