We’re in an era of rampant ticketing scams, and they require immediate intervention.
Recent ticketing schemes surrounding Taylor Swift’s coveted Eras Tour have gained attention for scamming eager fans out of thousands of dollars and robbing them of the concert of a lifetime. Notably, a Burlington, Ont. woman using the name “Denise Blackhawk” was recently charged for selling over 400 fake tickets to sold-out Toronto concert dates on Facebook Marketplace, profiting over $300,000 from unsuspecting victims.
This isn’t the first major ticketing scam to exist, and now that the Eras Tour has demonstrated the lengths people will go to acquire tickets, it probably won’t be the last. These illicit schemes are prevalent when there’s demand and an easy potential for profit: festival tickets, flights, sports games, designer items—you name it.
Whether carried out by well-versed, repeat scammers, or opportunistic individuals preying on willing concert goers, deceiving innocent people with realistic promises is inexcusable and just plain wrong. While it’s easy to direct our collective blame and disdain toward scammers, they’re just a symptom of a bigger problem we must recognize—the systems and cultures which enable these behaviours.
Perhaps the biggest scammers of all are the ticket distribution companies, like Ticketmaster. For a company with such a monopoly over the online ticketing space, Ticketmaster has failed to carry out its responsibilities. Unregulated resale prices on the platform have allowed resellers and scalpers to charge exorbitant amounts for tickets. When these get too high, desperate buyers turn to third-party sellers like Blackhawk, where there are no measures in place to ensure a legitimate exchange is taking place. Further, strategies like dynamic pricing or price surging—which allow prices to fluctuate based on demand—create further barriers to acquiring concert tickets.
In a time when celebrity voices hold significant influence, artists must recognize their role in impacting fair ticket pricing. For instance, artists like Oasis have promised to crack down on unauthorized resale tickets and make them available again on Ticketmaster, giving fans a better chance at accessing their show at a reasonable price. Artists like Swift should do the same.
The promised atmosphere of friendship, unity, and positivity promoted by the Eras Tour takes an ironic turn when the admission to this experience drives people to extreme measures. It’s sad to see a collective love for music turn into an unattainable commodity—one that thousands of dollars can’t even buy—leaving fans feeling isolated and disappointed when they fail to attend the show.
The world of digital ticketing and social media, where users cower behind screens and fake accounts, is becoming a prominent channel for targeting willing buyers. The amount of active Eras Tour discourse and the presence of Swift’s fanbase on these platforms makes them ideal environments for scammers to capitalize on fans’ vulnerabilities and their love for Taylor Swift.
It’s about time ticket monopolies and artists stepped in to relieve the unacceptable climb of ticket prices and mitigate deception from resellers. It’s the least they can do for their fans.
—Journal Editorial Board
Tags
concerts, Eras tour, scam, Taylor Swift, Ticketmaster
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