US senators rebuke Ticketmaster for raising fees after hidden charge crackdown: ‘bait and switch’

Richard Blumenthal says company acts like it has ‘get-out-of-jail-free card’ as records show it upping fees to cut losses

Senators slammed Ticketmaster for raising ticket fees following a regulatory crackdown on hidden charges as revealed in a report by the Guardian last week.

The Federal Trade Commission last May began requiring Ticketmaster to disclose concert ticket fees upfront – a practice known as all-in pricing. The company eliminated the order processing fee it charged at the the end of a transaction to comply with the rule.

But documents obtained by the Guardian in public records requests show how Ticketmaster simply raised other fees so it wouldn’t lose money.