President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at addressing widespread price gouging in the concert ticket market. This move is expected to alleviate the burden on music fans who have faced excessive resale prices for live events.
The order was signed in the Oval Office on March 31, 2025, with instructions for federal agencies to take action against ticket scalping practices. These practices have significantly impacted the entertainment industry, notably affecting Taylor Swift fans during her highly successful Eras Tour.
“It bothers a lot of other artists. They go out with a $100 ticket, and it sells for $2,000 the following night,” Trump commented, according to CNN, noting that “it is a big problem.”
The executive order targets what the White House characterizes as “unscrupulous middlemen” who impose high fees that negatively affect fans without any benefit to artists. It directs the Federal Trade Commission to enforce competition laws, promote price transparency in the ticket-buying process, and tackle unfair practices in the secondary ticket market.
Additionally, the Treasury Department and Department of Justice are tasked with ensuring ticket scalpers adhere to tax laws and other regulations. The order emphasizes strict enforcement of the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, which prohibits using automated software to bypass security measures on ticket sales platforms.
Musician Kid Rock was present at the signing ceremony, endorsing the measure and urging Congress to approve legislation that would cap resale ticket prices.
The ticketing industry faced significant scrutiny following the chaotic presale for Swift’s Eras Tour in November 2022. Many fans encountered website crashes, long wait times, and tickets disappearing from their shopping carts, leading to the cancellation of the public sale due to insufficient remaining inventory.
Ticketmaster issued an apology for the situation, stating, “We want to apologize to Taylor and all of her fans – especially those who had a terrible experience trying to purchase tickets. We feel we owe it to everyone to share some information to help explain what happened.”
The company explained that the public on-sale for Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour was canceled due to extremely high demand on ticketing systems and a shortage of available tickets to meet that demand.
Swift expressed her dissatisfaction with the events, acknowledging that although 2.4 million fans acquired tickets, efforts were underway to improve future ticket sales processes.
The ticketing issues led to a lawsuit against Live Nation Entertainment, Ticketmaster’s parent company, and prompted a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in January 2023 to examine the competitive landscape of the live entertainment ticketing industry.
In May 2024, the Justice Department and state attorneys general filed an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation, accusing the company of maintaining an “illegal monopoly” that inflates ticket prices.
Live Nation has expressed support for Trump’s executive order and advocated for further reforms in the resale market, including tighter enforcement of the 2016 BOTS Act and limits on resale prices.
Concerns surrounding ticketing, highlighted by the Eras Tour, have grown. Recently, two individuals, Tyrone Rose and Shamara P. Simmons, were charged with stealing over 900 concert tickets, including many for Swift’s tour, by exploiting a vulnerability in StubHub’s system, resulting in over $600,000 in profit.
The Eras Tour has been both a cultural and economic milestone, generating over $1 billion and contributing approximately $4.3 billion to the U.S. GDP. The average initial ticket price was $204, while secondary market prices averaged $1,652, with some reaching as high as $30,000.
Under the executive order, federal officials are required to submit a report within 180 days detailing actions taken and suggestions for further regulations or legislation to protect consumers in the live entertainment sector.
This action marks a rare moment of common ground between Trump and Swift, who has previously criticized the secondary market that rapidly lists tickets meant for fans at inflated prices.
For numerous concert-goers, particularly Swift’s devoted fans, this executive order might offer promise for more accessible and fairly priced tickets to future events. As implementation begins, both the industry and consumers will closely monitor the effectiveness of these measures in tackling the complex issues of ticket scalping and price gouging that have characterized the live entertainment market in recent years.