The world’s largest ticket sales company cited a problem with a third-party vendor for abruptly postponing ticket sales for six of Taylor Swift’s upcoming shows in Paris and Lyon, drawing the ire of her fans.
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The conflict between the multinational show business Ticketmaster and the American singer Taylor Swift, which began in November 2022 after a rushed sale of tickets for her “The Eras” tour, is far from over.
On Tuesday, July 12, after some fans reported on social media that they had trouble accessing the Ticketmaster website, sales of six of Swift’s upcoming shows in Paris and Lyon were abruptly halted.
On his French Twitter account, the ticket seller reported that “the Eras Tour in France is postponed and there are still tickets available. This morning’s sale was interrupted by an issue with a third-party vendor who is working to resolve the issue as soon as possible.”
“All codes not used to purchase tickets today will remain valid,” the post added.
The sale of billets for Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour in France is reported and the tickets are currently available. La vente de ce matin a été perturbée par un probleme avec un fournisseur tiers qui s’efforce de résoudre le probleme dès que posible. (1/3)
— Ticketmaster.fr (@TicketmasterFR) July 11, 2023
A new chapter in an old dispute
Last November, during ticket sales for Ticketmaster’s “The Eras” tour in the United States, the company’s website crashed during a pre-sale event and tens of thousands of people lost their chance to purchase after waiting for hours in a line row.
At the time, the company said two million tickets were sold, the most ever on the platform in a single day, and that its site crashed, not only because of the sheer number of fans eager to buy tickets, but also because of hacking attacks. bots, which posed as consumers in order to resell them.
The company later issued an apology “to Taylor and all of her fans, especially those who had a terrible experience trying to purchase tickets.” The singer also expressed her frustration, noting on Instagram that it was “unbearable” to see such mistakes happen.
Ticketmaster, in the sights of the authorities
With more than 500 million tickets sold annually, Ticketmaster is a leader in the entertainment industry.
Her case has transcended the economic and political arena, with the United States Congress accusing her of abusing her monopoly and with President Joe Biden pushing legislation to put a stop to what he has called “junk rates”, which refer to the little clarity in prices and exaggerated charges for additional services.
Meanwhile, consumer rights defense agencies from Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Spain recently called on him for transparency in ticket sales, amid criticism against him.
In Mexico, the latest controversy broke out when several fans wanted to attend the concert of the Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny in the capital in 2022. At that time, hundreds of them could not access the event, despite having valid tickets.
However, the Federal Consumer Attorney’s Office specified that the company reimbursed the cost of 2,155 tickets to the people who were affected by the intermittency in the access control system.
With AP and EFE
