Kid Rock to Testify Before the US Senate on Concert Ticket Sales

Photo Credit: Eva Rinaldi / CC by 2.0

Kid Rock will testify with Live Nation on a panel at the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee’s hearing on ticket sales practices and scalping concerns.

On Wednesday, January 28, at 2:30 PM ET, the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy will hold a public hearing entitled, “Fees Rolled on All Summer Long: Examining the Live Entertainment Industry.”

According to subcommittee chair Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), the hearing will examine live event ticket sale practices, fees charged by primary and secondary sellers, and the impact of automated bots buying up tickets.

The panel will include artist and noted Trump ally Kid Rock, Live Nation’s antitrust head Dan Wall, the Ticket Policy Forum’s Brian Berry, and concert promoter David Weingarten representing the Colorado Independent Venue Association. This group will address “unfair ticketing issues” and related areas such as “all-in pricing” and federal enforcement actions that remain ongoing.

The hearing will be livestreamed on YouTube and via the committee website, according to the committee’s announcement.

“The artist-fan connection is the foundation of the live entertainment industry, but the ticketing industry has exploited this connection by enabling scammers to drive up ticket prices and take advantage of consumers,” said Sen. Blackburn.

“Americans should not have to battle bots and fraudsters to see their favorite band or sports team, and that is exactly why the FTC is taking decisive action to hold bad actors accountable. This hearing will provide critical congressional oversight to ensure the ticketing industry puts consumers before scammers, and I look forward to hearing from each of the witnesses.”

“We’re eager to work with Congressional leaders on real solutions that put tickets back into the hands of fans,” said Berry. “The Live Nation/Ticketmaster monopoly continues to hurt fans at every stage of the process. It’s no secret that Live Nation/Ticketmaster will be trying to distract and shift the blame to resale platforms—because that is the only area in live events where they still face competition.”

News of the hearing comes amid federal agencies intensifying their scrutiny of ticketing practices, both from an antitrust standpoint and surrounding the use of bots to snatch up tickets. Live Nation and Ticketmaster are currently facing two federal lawsuits—one filed by the Department of Justice and a growing list of Attorneys General, and the other filed by the Federal Trade Commission.