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After Swifties swamp Ticketmaster, Tennessee AG wants to take a closer look at the ticket system

Ticketmaster crashed as millions of fans went to the website to buy tickets to see Taylor Swift on her upcoming tour.
Screenshot
Ticketmaster crashed as millions of fans went to the website to buy tickets to see Taylor Swift on her upcoming tour.

Presale tickets for Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour went online this week. But Ticketmaster crashed as millions of fans went to the website to buy them. Tennessee’s attorney general wants to investigate whether Ticketmaster may have violated consumer protection laws.

Madison resident Martha Ann Roberts is a long-time Taylor Swift fan.

“I’m maybe a little crazy, but not super crazy fan,” said Roberts.

So on Tuesday, she went online to buy tickets and immediately encountered a long wait.  

“Oh my gosh, it was a seven-hour process, but we’re in the building. We’re going,” Roberts said.

Roberts is one of the lucky fans who will see Swift perform at Nissan Stadium during her tour stop here in May. Other fans were not as fortunate. 

Ticketmaster released a statement notifying customers that the presale would reopen. However, hundreds of thousands of people have already snapped them up.  

Now, Skrmetti is taking a closer look at Ticketmaster, who profits from both direct sales and resales of tickets. 

“And so, if it looks like scalpers have been able to scoop up a lot of these tickets and then resell them through the platform, well then there’s an incentive there for the company to profit twice off the sales of these tickets,” said Skrmetti.

Skrmetti says at least one other state is interested in the case. 

As for Martha Ann Roberts, she’s most excited about this tour because Swift will be performing songs from her catalog of 10 studio albums. 

“I would love to hear anything from Folklore or Evermore. There’s a lot of songs from Lover and of course the new album, oh my gosh,” Roberts said.

Swift will perform in Nashville at Nissan Stadium on May 5, 6 and 7.

Blaise Gainey is a Political Reporter for WPLN News. He is the youngest of three siblings, husband and father of two. He previously held the State Government Reporter position for WFSU News in Tallahassee. He is from Apopka, Fla., and graduated from The School of Journalism at the Florida A&M University. He previously worked for The Florida Channel and WTXL-TV. He is excited to move to another capital and report on state government. In his spare time, he enjoys watching sports, outdoor activities and enjoying family time.
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