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☆ I paid a stranger on Facebook $1,545 for tickets to Taylor Swift's 'Eras Tour.' Here's how I avoided getting scammed.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Joni Sweet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

But like many Swifties, I never got access to Ticketmaster's disastrous presale for the Eras Tour. I posted on a Taylor Swift ticket-selling Facebook groupI turned to Facebook after I didn't hear back from several sellers on Twitter. Joni SweetMy search for Taylor Swift tickets started on Twitter. I had come across @ErasTourResell, an account which connects hopeful concertgoers with people selling their Eras Tour tickets for face value. I searched for terms like "Taylor Swift resell" and "Eras Tour tickets" and joined a few groups that came up.

☆ Live Nation posts $3.1 billion revenue and record attendance despite controversies Live Nation posts $3.1 billion revenue and record attendance despite controversies
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Live Nation posted a record $3.1 billion in revenue – up 73% from last year – in the first quarter of 2023, despite possible regulation and tremendous fallout from botched Ticketmaster sales for the Taylor Swift Eras tour. In an earnings release, the ticket-industry giant said over 19 million people attended events across 45 countries in the first quarter. In a single day last November, more than two million Taylor Swift tickets were sold on Live Nation’s Ticketmaster, a record for any artist. Live Nation stock rose about 15% on the news, to close at about $77 a share. Congressional hearingsLawmakers grilled Live Nation president and CFO Joe Berchtold in a three-hour hearing in January, alleging the ticketing giant wields too much monopolistic control over the industry.

If you're looking for where to buy the RTX 4070 today, we're here to make your search much easier. Check RTX 4070 stock now: USA | UKIn the world of PCs, there are few products more valuable than an Nvidia RTX graphics card. Take a look below to see links to stores to where we'll be looking out for RTX 4070 stock. Once it releases on April 13, you'll be able to buy a GeForce RTX 4070 from a variety of electronics stores, including Best Buy and B&H Photo Video. Every RTX 4070 purchase also comes bundled with a free Overwatch 2 Ultimate Battle Pass, and 1,000 Overwatch 2 coins.

☆ The problem with home-flipping giants
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Aj Latrace | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Meanwhile, the corporate scalpers of the housing market — companies that buy and relist homes by the thousands without doing much, if any, work on them to make a profit — are struggling. Last week, two of the biggest remaining corporate home-flipping companies, Opendoor and Offerpad, reported dismal earnings, another sign that their business model is incredibly risky. Kelman also said one "problem is that iBuying is a staggering amount of money and risk for a now-uncertain benefit. At its core, the main business model of home-flipping firms doesn't create a ton of immediate value. Opendoor, Offerpad, and other companies that rushed to purchase homes are now discounting the asking prices of those homes to get them off their books.

☆ Live Nation shows why concert tickets aren't going down anytime soon
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Bob Pisani | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

We kicked around the idea of going, until someone said that ticket prices were likely $1,000 and up for the sold-out event. Ticket seller Live Nation on Thursday reported astonishing numbers: fourth quarter revenues at $4.29 billion were up about 60%, well north of the $3.6 billion expected. Live Nation said this reinforced "the global nature of untapped fan demand and the opportunities we have for growth." Regarding the high ticket prices, Live Nation addressed the problem directly:"We believe that greater transparency on the entire ticketing ecosystem will improve the industry, and we have been engaging with policymakers to advocate for reforms. Live Nation made several suggestions to combat this, including that artists should decide resale rules.

WASHINGTON, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Ticketmaster is preparing to sell tickets for Beyonce's first tour in six years in a different way, hoping to avoid a repeat of last year's Taylor Swift debacle. Ticketmaster tweeted on Thursday that the demand to register for a chance to buy tickets for concerts in the nine cities in Group A, whose registration closed on Friday, exceeded the number of tickets by more than 800%. The North American leg of Beyonce's tour opens in Toronto on July 8 and closes in New Orleans on Sept. 27, according to the Ticketmaster website. After loud complaints from Taylor Swift fans, the company blamed more than 3.5 billion requests from fans, bots and scalpers for its overwhelmed website. On Thursday, the Judiciary Committee retweeted a news report about the Beyonce tour announcement and tweeted to @Ticketmaster, "We're watching."

☆ Ticketmaster-parent exec to blame 'industrial-scale ticket scalping' in testimony
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The president of Ticketmaster parent Live Nation (LYV.N), Joe Berchtold, is expected to testify on Tuesday before Congress that "industrial-scale ticket scalping" was to blame for the company's problems late last year in managing the sale of Taylor Swift concert tickets. Ticketmaster, which has been unpopular with fans for years, has drawn fresh heat from U.S. lawmakers over how it handled ticket sales for Swift's "Eras" tour, her first in five years. Experts say that Ticketmaster commands more than 70% market share of primary ticket services for major U.S. concert venues. In November, Ticketmaster canceled a planned ticket sale to the general public for Swift's tour after more than 3.5 billion requests from fans, bots and scalpers overwhelmed its website. A previous Ticketmaster dispute with the Justice Department culminated in a December 2019 settlement extending the consent agreement into 2025.

☆ Live Nation exec will face lawmakers about Taylor Swift concert tickets fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“It goes without saying that I’m extremely protective of my fans,” Swift wrote on Instagram in November. The mergerCriticism of Ticketmaster’s dominance dates back decades, but the Swift ticketing incident has once again turned that issue into a dinner table discussion at many households. Concert promoter Live Nation and ticketing company Ticketmaster, two of the largest companies in the concert business, announced their merger in 2009. ‘Customers are the ones that pay the price’While irate fans were left scrambling to wade through the Swift ticket confusion, their collective anger caught lawmakers’ attention. To me, what happened with the Swift concert tickets was not necessarily the result of Ticketmaster being the dominant player in the industry,” he said.

☆ Live Nation CFO defends Ticketmaster, blames bots for Taylor Swift debacle
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FILE PHOTO: The logo for Live Nation Entertainment is displayed on a screen on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., May 3, 2019. Ticketmaster has come under harsh criticism from fans and lawmakers, accusing it of having too much control over the market for concert tickets. Berchtold’s testimony said Live Nation has invested over $1 billion over the years to improve Ticketmaster. “Whether it meets the legal definition of a monopoly or not, Live Nation’s control of the live music ecosystem is staggering.”Ticketmaster has denied any anti-competitive practices and remains under a consent decree with the Justice Department following its 2010 merger with Live Nation. Live Nation included letters of support with its testimony including one from singer Garth Brooks who asked” My question is, as a country, why don’t we just make scalping illegal?

☆ Live Nation CFO to testify in Senate after Taylor Swift ticketing woes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: The logo for Live Nation Entertainment is displayed on a screen on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., May 3, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidWASHINGTON (Reuters) -Live Nation Entertainment President and Chief Financial Officer Joe Berchtold will testify at a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday after its Ticketmaster’s unit had problems managing the sale of Taylor Swift concert tickets, the committee said. Live Nation did not immediately comment. “As Live Nation leverages its power across the concert ecosystem to increase its profits, concertgoers see higher prices, and artists experience challenging touring dynamics,” Lawrence wrote in a New York Times essay last month. In November, Ticketmaster denied any anti-competitive practices and noted it remained under a consent decree with the Justice Department following its 2010 merger with Live Nation.

WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - A U.S. Senate committee will hold a hearing on Jan. 24 on the lack of competition in the ticketing industry after Ticketmaster's problems managing the sale of Taylor Swift concert tickets. The Senate Judiciary Committee hearing is titled "That’s The Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment." "We will examine how consolidation in the live entertainment and ticketing industries harms customers and artists alike." Consent decrees are often used to prohibit potentially anticompetitive practices or impose other requirements as a condition of merger approvals. A previous Ticketmaster dispute with the Justice Department culminated in a December 2019 settlement extending the consent agreement into 2025.

HONG KONG/BEIJING, Jan 6 (Reuters) - China is in talks with Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) to secure a licence that will allow domestic drugmakers to manufacture and distribute a generic version of the U.S. firm's COVID-19 antiviral drug Paxlovid in China, three sources told Reuters. In February last year, China approved Paxlovid, which was supposed to be largely available via hospitals, to treat high-risk patients in several provinces. Pfizer last month reached an agreement to export Paxlovid to China through a local company to make the medicine more widely available. A Pfizer spokesperson said the company is actively collaborating with Chinese authorities and all stakeholders to secure an adequate supply of Paxlovid in China. That licence does not allow the companies to sell generic Paxlovid in China.

☆ Karma for Taylor Swift fans as Ticketmaster offers second chance for 'Eras Tour' tickets
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Kaetlyn Liddy | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"We apologize for the difficulties you may have experienced, and have been asked by Taylor's team to create this additional opportunity for you to purchase tickets." The news comes one month after the public sale of Swift's "Eras Tour" was canceled due to "extraordinarily high demand." Ticketmaster claimed that 3.5 million fans pre-registered for Swift's Verified Fan program, the largest registration in its history. After they register as a "verified fan," Ticketmaster provides them with a code and a link to the purchase site. When tickets go on sale, the link leads fans to a "Smart Queue" that "keeps ticket bots out."

WASHINGTON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan, on Tuesday said giant companies like Ticketmaster (LYV.N), which faces a tsunami of criticism for problems in selling tickets to a 2023 Taylor Swift tour, can become "too big to care." "There can be concerns that when firms become (large) they can become too big to care," she added, saying giant firms may feel no need to invest in innovation because they do not face tough competition. Ticketmaster has drawn fresh heat from U.S. lawmakers over how it handled ticket sales for Swift's first tour in five years. Last month, U.S. lawmakers pressed the FTC to enforce a 2016 law against ticket scalpers using bots after Ticketmaster blamed the software for troubles selling tickets to Swift's tour. Ticketmaster has blamed problems with presale ticketing for the tour on unprecedented demand and an effort to keep out bots run by ticket scalpers.

☆ Big firms like Ticketmaster can become 'too big to care,' FTC chair says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan, on Tuesday said giant companies like Ticketmaster (LYV.N), which faces a tsunami of criticism for problems in selling tickets to a 2023 Taylor Swift tour, can become "too big to care." Speaking at the Wall Street Journal's CEO Council Summit, Khan said that it was the Justice Department that approved the merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation in 2010 and referenced a report that the department had a probe under way. "There can be concerns that when firms become (large) they can become too big to care," she added, saying that giant firms may feel like they don't need to invest in innovation because they're not facing tough competition. "There's been public reporting that the Justice Department continues to look at this and I'm sure it's top of mind for them, given all the incoming that they're getting," she added. Neither Ticketmaster nor the Justice Department immediately responded to requests for comment.

☆ Congress wants to grill Live Nation’s CEO over the Taylor Swift Ticketmaster fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

It also wants answers about how Ticketmaster plans to improve in the future. Swift’s Eras tour kicks off March 17 and will have 52 concerts in multiple stadiums across the United States over five months. In its letter to Rapino, the committee also said it wants information about the fees Ticketmaster charges customers. Rapino and Live Nation have caught the ire of Congress before. Senator Amy Klobuchar criticized Ticketmaster in an open letter Rapino in the days following the ticket snafu, saying she has “serious concerns” about the company’s operations.

☆ Taylor Swift fans sue Ticketmaster following fumbled presale
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Francesca Gariano | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The plaintiffs are seeking a penalty of $2,500 against Ticketmaster for every violation of Business and Professions Code, section 17200. The lawsuit specifically cited the “ticket sale disaster” that occurred on Nov. 15 and Nov. 16 during the Verified Fan presale, which caused the site to crash, and the Capital One presale. “We believe that both Taylor Swift and her fans were hurt by Ticketmaster,” said Jennifer Kinder, an attorney for the plaintiffs, in a statement. “Even when a high demand on sale goes flawlessly from a tech perspective, many fans are left empty handed,” Ticketmaster said. “It goes without saying that I’m extremely protective of my fans,” Swift wrote.

[1/2] Taylor Swift's "Red (Taylor's Version)" receives the Favorite Pop Album award during 2022 American Music Awards, at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California, U.S., November 20, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday pressed the Federal Trade Commission to enforce a 2016 law against ticket scalpers using bots after Ticketmaster blamed the software for troubles selling tickets to pop superstar Taylor Swift's upcoming tour. Ticketmaster (LYV.N) canceled planned ticket sales to the general public for Swift's 2023 U.S. concert tour, her first in five years, earlier this month as 3.5 billion ticket requests from fans, bots and scalpers overwhelmed the website. A spokesman for the FTC confirmed that it had received the letter, but had no comment. Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - A U.S. Senate antitrust panel will hold a hearing on the lack of competition in the ticketing industry after Ticketmaster's problems last week managing the sale of Taylor Swift tickets, Senator Amy Klobuchar, chair of the panel, said on Tuesday. "That’s why we will hold a hearing on how consolidation in the live entertainment and ticketing industry harms customers and artists alike." Senators Klobuchar and Mike Lee, the top Republican on the committee, did not provide a date for the hearing or a list of witnesses. For her part, the pop superstar on Friday said it was "excruciating" for her to watch fans struggle to secure tickets and that she had been assured that Ticketmaster could handle large demand. Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ticketmaster Sells More Than Two Million Taylor Swift Tickets in One Day, a Record
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Anne Steele | Alyssa Lukpat | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Taylor Swift ’s presale for her first tour in five years broke sales records as millions of fans rushed to snap up tickets despite glitches affecting Ticketmaster’s system and backlash from politicians over the ticket seller’s power. Ms. Swift’s 52-date stadium run sold over two million tickets on Tuesday—more than any other artist in a single day, according to the company. Tuesday’s presale was limited to a select group of people who had registered with Ticketmaster, part of an effort to ensure that actual fans, rather than scalpers, got first crack at tickets.

☆ Taylor Swift Breaks Ticket-Sales Record With ‘Eras Tour’ Despite Ticketmaster Glitches
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Anne Steele | Alyssa Lukpat | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Taylor Swift ‘s presale for her first tour in five years broke sales records as millions of fans rushed to snap up tickets despite glitches affecting Ticketmaster’s system and backlash from politicians over the ticket seller’s power. Ms. Swift’s 52-date stadium run sold over two million tickets on Tuesday—more than any other artist in a single day, according to the company. Tuesday’s presale was limited to a select group of people who had registered with Ticketmaster, part of an effort to ensure that actual fans, rather than scalpers, got first crack at tickets.

#TaylorSwiftTix” one fan wrote, echoing the frustration of thousands of “Swifties,” the nickname for diehard Swift fans, vying to see their favorite artist in her first concert tour since before the pandemic. Backlash against the ticketing companies has also grown: When a major artist announces a tour, fans inevitably complain on social media about Ticketmaster’s high fees and unchecked scalping. Users shared screenshots of emails from Ticketmaster that said “Your invitation to TaylorSwiftTix Presale powered by Verified Fan.” “You’ve been selected!” the email reads. As for the Swift ticket sales chaos on Tuesday, Ticketmaster urged fans on Twitter to avoid going through its homepage to get tickets. "If you received a code to the TaylorSwiftTix Presale, please login and access the queue through the link you received via text rather than entering through the Ticketmaster homepage," Ticketmaster tweeted.

That has led to sharp rises in prices for new and used cars — if there are any left on the lot — and to scalpers snatching’ up the latest video game consoles to resell at inflated prices. Many industries, including oil refineries, car factories and airlines, cut staff and production in 2020 at the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic, leaving them understaffed when demand for travel roared back. Gas prices only started falling in the summer, after a prolonged rise at the start of the year. And rising natural gas prices have led to spikes in the cost of electricity, sending energy bills soaring in some cities. The federal government has taken steps to combat rising prices.

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