In an attempt to protest Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation’s control of the ticketing industry, the non-profit organization Fan Fairness Coalition has launched a fictional band: The Monopoly.
FFC is aiming to showcase “one company’s dominance, selfishness, arrogance, and control to step on a fan’s right to a fair ticketing experience” with The Monopoly. On the fictional band’s YouTube channel, they’re described as “the most evil music group since 2010,” noting “break them up” and “every voice counts.” Their lyrics include sharp digs at the ticketing giant, like “You’ll keep coming back to us / You’ve got no one else to turn to / You’ll keep coming back to us / Even when all your friends warn you.”
“The Monopoly band is a reminder to fans that the powerful are not incentivized to change on their own,” the FFC said in a statement.
The playful-yet-informative videos from The Monopoly showcase Ticketmaster and Live Nation’s dominance since its merger in 2010. FFC said the mission starts by urging Washington to take tangible action by breaking-up the pair, who are acting as venue owners and operators, ticket sellers, and promoters simultaneously. They hope to improve fans’ experience when purchasing tickets online.
FFC supports the Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation into Ticketmaster and Live Nation’s merger, and they’re not alone. A new online survey, conducted by Global Strategy Group Guidant Polling & Strategy and commissioned by secondary ticketing site SeatGeek, found that a majority of Americans support the federal government seeking to break-up the pair.
Fans have become fed-up with ticket sales to big-name artists this year. From Olivia Rodrigo and Noah Kahan to Bad Bunny and blink-182, fans of all genres are feeling the burn of Ticketmaster’s practices like dynamic and platinum pricing, which surges ticket prices to unattainable levels. Those who normally would be able to purchase concert tickets have been priced-out of seeing their favorite artists live.
Legislators have also taken note; Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Mike Lee (R-UT) have called-out the company’s market power, with Klobuchar noting in a hearing held by the Senate Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights that the merger “has decimated competition in the ticketing industry and resulted in higher fees for consumers.”
The Monopoly’s lyrics in “Too Busy Counting” seem to ring true: “Give us all your savings.”
