Fans looking to buy tickets last week to Drake’s upcoming tour were shocked by surged ticket prices, and at least some are turning to the legal system to hold Ticketmaster accountable. A Montreal-based law firm has filed a lawsuit on behalf of consumers, alleging that the ticketing giant “intentionally misleads consumers for its own financial gain.”
Nosebleed tickets to @Drake (13th to last row of the Bell Centre) sold on the primary market by @Ticketmaster & @TicketmasterCA as #OfficialPlatinum or #PlatineOfficiel (in French) for $789.54 is robbery pic.twitter.com/a5OXUrqePq
— Joey Zukran (@JoeyZukran) March 22, 2023
It's robbery because #OfficialPlatinum tickets for the same show, on the same night to see @Drake in the reds (lower bowl section 111) are sold by @Ticketmaster & @TicketmasterCA for $537, i.e $252 less than the nose bleeds supposed #OfficialPlatinum tickets – which is absurd! pic.twitter.com/tSALkdetjP
— Joey Zukran (@JoeyZukran) March 22, 2023
The lawsuit was filed in Quebec’s Laval district, and names Ticketmaster Canada and Ticketmaster LLC in California as defendants. It alleges that “platinum” ticket practices are inherently misleading, particularly in instances where “platinum” seats are surged far higher than other nearby seats, and offer no other amenities despite the surged prices. It was filed by Montreal-based LPC Advocat Inc.
“By advertising certain tickets at “Official Platinum,” Ticketmaster gives Class Members the false impression that those seats are better, more limited and more valuable than the “Regular” tickets, thereby enabling Ticketmaster to charge a premium based on these false representations,” the lawsuit reads, in part. It asks for damages to class members equal to “the aggregate of the price paid for “Platinum Official” tickets minus what these tickets would have been priced at, truthfully, as regular tickets,” as well as punitive damages equaling $300 per customer impacted.
The complaint also notes that the practice of artificially hiding supply – in this instance the fact that there were additional shows announced after the first day of sales, but also likely the future release of huge numbers of tickets to both performances in the market – is itself deceptive and designed to trick consumers into purchasing tickets at inflated prices during the initial sales rush.
Ticketmaster and its increasing use of price surging “dynamic” ticket pricing and “platinum” ticket systems have been under considerable fire as live events have been returning post-pandemic. Fans of acts including Adele, Bruce Springsteen, The Weeknd, and Beyonce have seen huge complaints from their fans over the practices, which are designed to capture the maximum possible revenue during the initial moments of concert tickets being available for purchase. The Cure made headlines recently by deliberately avoiding such practices, only to see the fees charged for many tickets to its upcoming tour exceed the actual price the band was charging, with Robert Smith going on a tirade that caused Ticketmaster to refund portions of fees to some consumers in order to counteract the terrible publicity.
Lawmakers in the United States are currently exploring several options for reform to the ticketing ecosystem, with a White House push for eliminating “junk fees” and ticket holdbacks that artificially hide available supply from consumers gaining steam, including the introduction of a “Junk Fee” act this week by two U.S. Senators. Live Nation, Ticketmaster’s parent corporation, has remained adamant that ticket resale is the source of all consumer issues and is asking lawmakers to grant it and other similar industry insiders the power to eliminate competition through the use of mobile-only ticketing systems designed to eliminate consumer ticket rights entirely.
Drake’s tour begins in the middle of June, with his Montreal dates coming a month later. The full touring schedule and links to ticket marketplaces are included below:
Ticket Links
Drake tickets at MEGASeats.com | 10% off use code TICKETNEWS
Drake tickets at ScoreBig
Drake tickets at SeatGeek
Drake tickets at StubHub
Drake tickets at Ticket Club | Free membership use code TICKETNEWS
Drake tickets at Vivid SeatsDRAKE: ‘IT’S ALL A BLUR’ 2023 TOUR DATES
Fri Jun 16 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Center
Mon Jun 19 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
Wed Jun 21 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
Sat Jun 24 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
Wed Jun 28 – Miami, FL – Miami-Dade Arena
Sat Jul 01 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
Sun Jul 02 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
Wed Jul 05 – Chicago, IL – United Center
Thu Jul 06 – Chicago, IL – United Center
Sat Jul 08 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena
Tue Jul 11 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
Wed Jul 12 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
Fri Jul 14 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
Mon Jul 17 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
Tue Jul 18 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
Tue Jul 25 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
Wed Jul 26 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
Fri Jul 28 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena
Mon Jul 31 – Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center
Sat Aug 12 – Inglewood, CA – Kia Forum
Sun Aug 13 – Inglewood, CA – Kia Forum
Fri Aug 18 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center
Mon Aug 21 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena
Tue Aug 22 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena
Fri Aug 25 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
Mon Aug 28 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
Fri Sep 01 – Las Vegas, NV – T-Mobile Arena
Tue Sep 05 – Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena
