, , , , , ,

Why Are Taylor Swift Eras Tour Tickets So Much Cheaper in Europe?


Taylor Swift is returning to the road to complete the final leg of her Eras Tour for fans eager to hear the singer-songwriter perform new tracks like “Fortnight,” “Down Bad” and “Florida!!!” from her new album, The Tortured Poets Department.


But those fans may be in for some sticker shock. Prices to see Swift at one of her final nine shows in the United States have increased following the release of the album April 19, with the average get-in-the-door price — the lowest price available — hovering around $2,600 per ticket, according to data from TicketIQ. That means it would cost a couple more than $5,000 just to be in the same building as Swift in Miami (Oct 18-20), New Orleans (Oct 25-27) and Indianapolis (Nov. 1-3) this fall.


In Europe, however — where Swift starts a 51-show run on May 9 with a kickoff date at Paris’ La Defense Arena — tickets cost only a fraction of that. Right now, the get-in-the door price to see the opening of the European leg of the Eras Tour is $340 a ticket — 87% cheaper than the average price in the United States.


That means a fan in Miami could fly to Paris for about $900 a person (according to prices generated on kayak.com), spend two nights at a four-star hotel at $250 a night and purchase a $340 concert ticket for a grand total of $1,740 — which is still $760 less than the cheapest tickets currently available for her Miami shows.


Tickets to see Swift in Stockholm (May 17-19) are even cheaper, at $312 for the cheapest tickets, while tickets for her show in Portugal (May 24-25) start at $336 and in Spain (May 29-30) start at $324. Prices do start to climb in the United Kingdom, with the get-in-the-door price hovering around £540 (about $674 USD) for Swift’s Liverpool shows (June 13-15). Prices to see Swift at Wembley Stadium (June 21-23) hover around £720 ($900).


The reason for the huge difference in price, experts say, is due in part to longstanding consumer skepticism about resale tickets in most of Europe. That’s coupled with a much more aggressive regulatory environment where artists and consumers are empowered to report and remove illegal ticket listings, and where prices are kept low thanks to laws limiting how high tickets can be marked up over face value.


The European approach is significantly different from that of the United States, where ticket resale is not regulated and deceptive marketing practices, including the use of deceptive websites and speculative ticket listings, continue unabated despite widespread outcry from consumers. And federal officials don’t regularly enforce the few ticketing laws that do exist. It took five years after the BOTS Act — banning automated programs that jump the queue and buy up tickets — was passed for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to bring a case against brokers for violating the bill.


Sam Shemtob, managing director for ticket resale advocacy group Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing (FEAT), points to Europe as a model for how governments can be more vigilant about regulating resale markets. In countries like France, Germany and the Netherlands, ticket resellers face limits on how much tickets can be marked up on secondary sites — typically 20% over face value. Other countries like the United Kingdom allow resale but restrict who is allowed to post tickets for resale and give artists and event promoters the right to take some resale ticket listings down.


Adopting European-style regulations in the United States by restricting ticket markups to 20% above face value would transform the concert business overnight and likely drive prices down dramatically on the secondary market. Markup caps would also likely make programs like Ticketmaster’s platinum ticket pricing (which charges high markups for a small percentage of tickets to offset the resale market) obsolete and significantly reduce the number of ticket brokers and bad actors using bots to disrupt ticket sales and illegally buy up tickets.


A federal cap on ticket markups would also significantly disrupt the secondary ticketing market and push many brokers out of business, which might create unintended consequences for sports teams that are much more willing to sell season tickets to brokers and depend on resellers for distribution. It’s also unclear if Americans would even accept a regulatory framework capping how much tickets could be marked up. Lawmakers in New York, Utah, Colorado, Connecticut and Virginia have all passed laws in the last decade making it illegal to restrict how and where ticket brokers resell tickets. While U.S. consumers often complain about the excesses of ticket resale and like the idea of using technology to keep tickets out of the hands of scalpers, they also dislike the restrictions that come with non-transferable tickets and tend to loudly oppose policies that create inconveniences.


Shemtob notes that Europe’s ticketing rules aren’t just about protecting price, but are also designed to empower citizens to take action.


On Jan. 1, 2025, Europe’s Digital Services Act (DSA) will go into effect, creating a uniform set of guidelines for online ticket resale requiring resellers to disclose their names and contact details to potential ticket buyers. The DSA also mandates that resale platforms track takedowns of public ticket listings (to help provide a record of the deceptive activity taking place) and ban deceptive marketing practices.


While many of the DSA’s reforms mirror U.S. efforts to clean up ticketing, Shemtob says a provision in the DSA bill that makes it simple to flag, report and take down ticket listings that violate the rules is a game-changer for consumer advocates. The law creates “a clear process for removing illegal ticket listings as and when they appear,” he said in a statement provided to Billboard, putting in place “the groundwork for a fairer, more transparent ticket-buying experience for consumers.”


Besides keeping prices in Europe low, the legislation has also led to a surprising boom in tourism from U.S. fans traveling to the continent to pursue cheaper Eras Tour tickets: A spokesperson for StubHub told Billboard that 68% of ticket purchases for Swift’s 51-show run in Europe have come from U.S. buyers.

https://www.billboard.com/business/touring/taylor-swift-eras-tour-tickets-cheaper-europe-1235671760/


November 2024
M T W T F S S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
252627282930  

About Us

Welcome to encircle News! We are a cutting-edge technology news company that is dedicated to bringing you the latest and greatest in everything tech. From automobiles to drones, software to hardware, we’ve got you covered.

At encircle News, we believe that technology is more than just a tool, it’s a way of life. And we’re here to help you stay on top of all the latest trends and developments in this ever-evolving field. We know that technology is constantly changing, and that can be overwhelming, but we’re here to make it easy for you to keep up.

We’re a team of tech enthusiasts who are passionate about everything tech and love to share our knowledge with others. We believe that technology should be accessible to everyone, and we’re here to make sure it is. Our mission is to provide you with fun, engaging, and informative content that helps you to understand and embrace the latest technologies.

From the newest cars on the road to the latest drones taking to the skies, we’ve got you covered. We also dive deep into the world of software and hardware, bringing you the latest updates on everything from operating systems to processors.

So whether you’re a tech enthusiast, a business professional, or just someone who wants to stay up-to-date on the latest advancements in technology, encircle News is the place for you. Join us on this exciting journey and be a part of shaping the future.

Podcasts

TWiT 1007: All the Hotdogs in the World – China's 'Salt Typhoon' Hack, Google on the Chopping Block, Recall AI This Week in Tech (Audio)

In this episode of This Week in Tech, the panel tackles the "biggest hack in US history," the future of AI, and the role of government in tech. From the Chinese hack's implications to Microsoft's AI-powered Recall, the Supreme Court's tech-related cases, and the push for social media age verification, Leo Laporte, Patrick Beja, Wesley Faulkner, and Alex Wilhelm provide insightful analysis and lively discussion on the most pressing issues facing the industry today. China's "Salt Typhoon" hack, dubbed the "worst hack in our nation's history," which compromised US telecommunications infrastructure and allowed surveillance of high-profile individuals The panel debates the challenges of securing outdated infrastructure and the role of government in regulating tech companies DOJ's push for Google to sell off Chrome to break its search monopoly, and the potential implications for competition and innovation Alex Wilhelm's article "If you like startups, you should love anti-trust" and the importance of fostering competition in the tech industry Microsoft's Windows 365 Link, a $349 mini PC that streams Windows from the cloud, and the potential for thin client computing Microsoft's Recall AI feature, which records and indexes users' screen activity, raising security concerns but offering potential benefits for users The Supreme Court's involvement in cases related to Facebook's Cambridge Analytica data breach and the fate of America's low-income broadband fund The panel also discusses their personal experiences with parenting in the digital age and the challenges of balancing screen time, privacy, and education for children Meta's push for Apple and Google to verify users' ages on social media platforms, and the challenges of implementing effective age verification while protecting user privacy Amazon's talks with Instacart, Uber, Ticketmaster, and others to enhance its AI-powered Alexa assistant Spirit Airlines filing for bankruptcy amidst financial losses and mounting debt payments Alex laments the addition of ads to Amazon Prime Video and the panel debates the tradeoffs of bundled subscription services Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Patrick Beja, Wesley Faulkner, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: Melissa.com/twit shopify.com/twit veeam.com lookout.com bitwarden.com/twit
  1. TWiT 1007: All the Hotdogs in the World – China's 'Salt Typhoon' Hack, Google on the Chopping Block, Recall AI
  2. TWiT 1006: Underwater Alien Civilizations – Bluesky Growth, Tyson Vs. Paul, AI Granny
  3. TWiT 1005: $125,000 in Baguettes – iPod Turns 23, The $1.1M AI Painting, Roblox
  4. TWiT 1004: Embrace Uncertainty – Political Texts, Daylight Saving Time, Digital Ad Market
  5. TWiT 1003: CrabStrike – Delta Sues Crowdstrike, Hospital AI, Surge Pricing