Minnesota bill would cap concert ticket resales at 15%
A bill moving forward at the Minnesota Legislature would cap the resale price of concert tickets at no more than 15% above the original face value after fees and force platforms like SeatGeek and StubHub to disclose the original ticket price. The proposal, carried by Rep. Erin Koegel (DFL–Spring Lake Park), targets bots and bulk resellers that snap up tickets and then sharply mark them up, but it would not apply to tickets for sports events or Broadway-style performances. A StubHub representative warned lawmakers that primary sellers like Ticketmaster and Live Nation routinely hold back roughly half of tickets and create artificial scarcity, driving up prices before the resale market ever sees them. The bill advanced out of committee on Wednesday with some members questioning how far the state can go without also tackling primary-market practices, especially given Minnesota’s separate antitrust suit against Ticketmaster/Live Nation and ongoing federal action that so far has delivered no direct compensation to consumers. For Twin Cities concertgoers shut out of big shows or gouged on the secondary market, the measure would put a hard ceiling on resale prices while leaving the underlying monopoly fight with Ticketmaster largely unresolved.
📌 Key Facts
- Bill would cap resale concert ticket prices at 15% above the original ticket cost after fees.
- Resale platforms like SeatGeek and StubHub would be required to clearly display the original ticket price.
- The cap would not apply to sporting events or Broadway-style performances.
- StubHub told lawmakers Ticketmaster/Live Nation often hold back about half of tickets, creating artificial shortages and higher primary prices.
- Minnesota is independently suing Ticketmaster/Live Nation over alleged monopoly practices, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar is pushing a federal bill to ensure consumers benefit from related settlements.
📊 Relevant Data
Resale concert ticket prices often more than double the original face value, with markups reaching up to 500% for popular tours like BTS in 2021.
SO CASUALLY CRUEL — U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Bots enable rapid acquisition of tickets, leading to sell-outs and resale prices inflated up to $20,000, as occurred during the Taylor Swift Eras Tour presale disruptions.
SO CASUALLY CRUEL — U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Average concert ticket face values have increased from $25.81 in 1996 to $136.45 in 2024, rising 2.66 times faster than inflation.
SO CASUALLY CRUEL — U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
86 percent of Gen Z respondents admitted to overspending on live events, indicating affordability challenges for younger consumers amid rising ticket prices.
Concert Ticket Prices Are Soaring, and Busting Gen Z's Budgets — The New York Times
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