Is Taylor Swift the problem in “Anti-Hero” or is it Ticketmaster? 26 fans of Swift are suing Ticketmaster, claiming that the company intentionally sold an overabundance of tickets to take advantage of exorbitant demand, with prices soaring above the competitive market. The lawsuit is demanding a $2,500 fine for each civil violation, which could escalate to millions in owed dues on behalf of Ticketmaster. 

On November 1st, Swift made a guest appearance on Good Morning America to announce “The Eras Tour,” intended to highlight her musical journey as an artist. Swift fans, ecstatic over the news, were quick to go to Ticketmaster and claim their seats. With the expectation of obtaining presale tickets, fans were enraged when the site repeatedly crashed due to the demand. The continuous crashing of the site resulted in impulsive purchases by fans and extended waits for others. 

Lina Melnyk, a NASH junior, ran into trouble ordering tickets for one of Swift’s two shows planned for June of 2023 at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh.

“Each time I tried to order, Ticketmaster would crash,” she said, adding that by the time she found the tickets again, “they were already sold.” 

Tickets for the show were also being bought and resold at higher prices by bots in the pre-sale system, causing prices of tickets to skyrocket to almost thousands more than the original ticket cost. Some of the cheapest tickets cost hundreds of dollars.

Calla Ewing, a NASH junior, searched for tickets on the resale market.

“The price of tickets was never the same each time I would pull them up,” Ewing said. “It’s almost like they just kept going up. This is something I have never experienced before when buying a ticket.”

Many Swift fans are enraged by these events and believe that Ticketmaster is abusing its powers and allowing shady deals to take place on its platform.

According to Taylor Swift’s management team, tickets were released with the intention of running between $49-$449, but fans have found many (non-VIP) that were $12,000 for a single ticket, with the most expensive priced at $95,000.

NASH junior Annie Wiethorn was unable to get her hands on any tickets.

“They were outrageously expensive, and I couldn’t afford even the worst seats that were offered,” she said, adding that, as a huge fan of Swift, she felt “extremely disappointed and hurt about not being able to attend this concert.”

However, fans’ troubles did not stop there. Ticketmaster then canceled the public sale after selling over two million tickets, claiming to have “insufficient remaining ticket inventory.”

Swift responded by stating that she is “extremely protective of her fans,” adding that her trust in Ticketmaster has been broken. 

She went on to explain that Ticketmaster reassured her that they would be capable of handling such a high demand. By the end of her statement, Swift assured fans that there will most likely be more opportunities to get her fans together to sing these songs.

Nevertheless, this scandal will likely make history, considering it has made its way to the House of Representatives. The discussion amongst lawmakers may bring about change to the ticket-buying process in years to come.