After Ticketmaster’s terrible year, this is how the concert business can be redeemed

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After a series of public-relations nightmares over surging prices, website crashes and extra charges, here’s what has to happen to fix a broken system

Because of that fiasco and because of complaints by fans about expensive seats and service charges, Ticketmaster’s parent company Live Nation has drawn the attention of some U.S. Congress members, who accuse it of monopolistic practices.

“Fans never, ever want to blame their favourite artists,” says veteran Canadian music publicist Eric Alper. “But the villain is not Ticketmaster or Live Nation.” More and more, those extra charges are being revealed up front. A sample ticket to see Lynyrd Skynyrd and ZZ Top at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage next summer is listed on Ticketmaster’s website at a final cost of $126

Critics see dynamic pricing as exploitative and decidedly unfriendly to true blue fans who can barely afford a head of lettuce, let alone $568.26 for a high-end seat to see Shania Twain at Calgary’s Scotiabank Saddledome in May. Proponents say that dynamic pricing is simply a supply-and-demand proposition, and that if the artists don’t take that cash from ticket buyers, the secondary markets – essentially legalized scalping – will.

While the frequency of live-streamed concerts dropped off with the return of in-person concerts, there's been an uptick lately when it comes to marquee artists. Last year, a live concert from Adele was shown on NBC.Building on the streaming model, concerts could be beamed into bars and theatres – not just computer screens and Smart TVs – for a more communal experience.

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