In a move designed to offer fans more transparency when they buy a ticket, Live Nation Entertainment’s Ticketmaster division has begun offering details on the total cost of a ticket before the purchase is made.

Fans can now see their ticket subtotal and click on “Price Details” to see a breakdown of the fees associated with the purchase. Using an upcoming Carrie Underwood concert as an example, the price of the ticket is listed as $42.75, followed by a facility fee of $2.75 and a convenience fee of $13.45, for a total of $58.95.

Live Nation Executive Chairman Irving Azoff tweeted about the move on his Twitter page over the weekend, which coincided with the company’s launch of a new blog, called Ticketology.

ticketflipping provides valuable tools for ticket resale professionals

For years, Ticketmaster has been criticized by fans for its fees, which were only disclosed at check out, which often made consumers upset. So, by offering the information up front, the company is hoping to garner some goodwill and improve the ticket buying process.

“All of the research we’ve done, and all of our conversations with fans like you tell us that the way we present these fees in the check out process is a huge frustration for you and hurts ticket sales. You just want to know UP FRONT in the buying process how much of your hard earned money you are being asked to pay for a given seat. If we are as transparent as possible with you sooner in the purchase process, you can make the decision about how much you want to pay to go to an event,” wrote Nathan Hubbard, CEO of the Ticketmaster division.

“The problem is that historically we haven’t told you how much you have to pay for a given seat until very late in the buying process. And our data tells us this angers many of you to the point that you abandon your purchase once you see the total cost, and that you don’t come back. The data also says (and this is the important piece) that if we had told you up front what the total cost was, you would have bought the ticket! So by perpetuating this antiquated fee presentation, fans are getting upset, while we and our clients are losing ticket sales,” Hubbard added.

Not all shows will feature such extensive fee details because some venue contracts prohibit the release of that information, Hubbard said, but the company is hoping to rectify that in the future.

As for the company’s new blog, Ticketmaster aims to use it to deliver unfiltered information to ticket buyers.

“Ticketology brings you regular posts about our business from the people who lead, live, and love it. It’s your window into the live entertainment industry with regular blurbs on what we’re up to (including new fan-first policies and product features), insights on company happenings, plus fun fan and artist spotlights. Get it here first, direct from the source,” the company states.

Ticket Club ad - members of this ticket resale platform can purchase tickets with no service fees. Click this ad to go to Ticket Club and claim a free one-year membership using the code TICKETNEWS