Another ticketing platform is in legal trouble. The District of Columbia is suing StubHub for deceptive business practices over the resale site’s hidden fees. “For years, StubHub has illegally deceived District consumers through its convoluted junk fee scheme,†said Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb in a statement. The lawsuit focuses on StubHub’s “drip pricing†model, in which the site advertises one sale price for a ticket, gives users a countdown to purchase that ticket, and shows the much higher final price with fees only on the final page. The countdown, the suit argues, pressures consumers to purchase tickets without having time to consider the fees or compare prices on other platforms. In its own statement, StubHub maintained it was following the law. “StubHub is committed to creating a transparent, secure, and competitive marketplace to benefit consumers,†the site said. “We are disappointed that the D.C. Attorney General is targeting StubHub when our user experience is consistent with the law, our competitors’ practices, and the broader e-commerce sector.†The lawsuit charges StubHub with two violations of D.C.’s Consumer Protection Procedures Act.
As one example, the lawsuit looks at resale tickets for an Usher concert at Capital One Arena on August 20. The site first shows an allegedly “deceptive†price of $178 each for two 400-level tickets. Then it gives the user a ten-minute countdown and directs them through multiple pages — even requiring users to log in and enter payment information before they can see the final price with fees. The lawsuit counted ten screens between selecting the tickets and seeing the fees. And the final “fulfillment and service fees†on the tickets were $70.50 each, amounting to nearly 40 percent of the original ticket price. The suit also argues StubHub “misrepresents the nature and purpose of those fees†by not explaining what they are or establishing them as a set number or percentage.
According to the lawsuit, StubHub used fees in its pricing between 2014–15 but removed them after testing found that customers were more likely to purchase expensive tickets if they did not see fees. “StubHub intentionally hides the true price to boost profits at its customers’ expense,†Schwalb said. “The District is home to one of the nation’s largest and most vibrant live entertainment scenes, and StubHub’s predatory tactics disproportionately harm District residents. That is why today we’re suing to end StubHub’s exploitative pricing scheme.â€
The lawsuit follows a Biden-administration crackdown on junk fees, including in tickets. It also comes after the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit to break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster, arguing that the companies have a monopoly over primary ticketing — allowing them to set high fees as well. Twenty-nine states and D.C. joined that lawsuit.