For years, music and sports fans have had to go through Ticketmaster in order to go see Nickelback or the Harlem Globetrotters or Hamilton or whatever–forking over hefty fees for the chance to fork over more money to buy tickets. The company, which was founded back in 1976 and merged with Live Nation in 2010, has dominated the ticket-buying market for decades and, despite Pearl Jam’s best efforts (and StubHub’s, for that matter), Ticketmaster still reigns supreme in the online ticketing world.
Now there may be an unlikely savior—Amazon.
Reuters reports that Amazon is looking at entering the online ticketing world and, frankly, consumers are ready for a little Goliath vs. Goliath competition in the field. As Reuters notes, consumers hate paying Ticketmaster’s service fees, which make a seemingly affordable ticket feel like a luxury (and seeing a Dave Matthews Tribute Band should never be a luxury). This isn’t that much of a stretch for Amazon, which, Reuters reports, has been selling tickets to London plays since 2015.
While a deal and all its details are still a long way off, Reuters speculates that Amazon could use free ticket sales as yet another way to lure people to Prime, and bands could sell merch alongside the tickets. Amazon faces an uphill battle to go against the entrenched Ticketmaster, but fewer companies have the infrastructure, resources, and sheer ambition. Who better to face off against a behemoth than an even bigger behemoth?
Read more here while waiting for Ticketmaster to put more Jay Z tickets on sale.
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