UJ
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On Monday, President Donald Trump enacted an executive order designed to combat price gouging for live event tickets.
This directive instructs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to collaborate with Attorney General Pam Bondi to enforce competition laws within the concert and entertainment sectors, promoting price transparency at every phase of the ticket purchasing journey for consumers.
Musician Kid Rock, who made an appearance at last July’s Republican National Convention, was present for the signing in the Oval Office.
During the signing, Trump remarked about Kid Rock, “I’ve talked to him over the years about this issue and it irks him. It disturbs a lot of other artists too. They offer a $100 ticket, and then it goes for $2,000 the very next night.”
Trump admitted his initial ignorance about price gouging: “I didn’t know much about it, but I looked into it, and it’s a serious issue.” He then encouraged Kid Rock, whose real name is Robert James Ritchie, to express his thoughts on the subject.
“I want fans to be able to access fair ticket prices and enjoy more shows,” Kid Rock stated. “I would love to lower my ticket prices, but if I do, these bots sweep them up and resell for hundreds more, enriching those unscrupulous actors.”
Trump’s order calls for stricter enforcement of the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, a regulation from 2016 that enables the FTC to take action against individuals and businesses that use bots to purchase concert tickets in bulk for resale.
Price gouging gained significant attention during Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in 2022, when resale prices skyrocketed to tens of thousands of dollars. This led to severe backlash against Ticketmaster, the largest ticketing platform and concert promoter in the country, as lawmakers accused the company of monopolistic practices.
Last year, the Justice Department, along with 30 state and district attorneys general, initiated an antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster’s parent company, Live Nation, alleging abuse of their industry dominance to the detriment of consumers across the nation.
Trump’s executive order complements the efforts from the Biden administration to address hidden fees in the ticketing industry. In December, then-President Joe Biden’s FTC announced a final rule prohibiting concealed “convenience” or “service” fees for concert tickets at checkout.
The live concert and entertainment sector in America contributes approximately $132.6 billion to the economy and supports around 913,000 jobs, as reported by 2019 data from Oxford Economics.
