Yelp drops TicketNetwork after NIVA exposes fake, overpriced ticket sales

UPDATE: After The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) called on Yelp to stop sending users to an affiliated site selling fake tickets and inflating prices, the recommendation site eliminated the offending links. Then, the war of words between NIVA and the offending ticket reseller TicketNetwork began.

According to NIVA, Yelp had been misleading users by directing them to a Yelp-branded TicketNetwork site selling fake and overpriced tickets. “By partnering with TicketNetwork — a company known for anti-competitive and predatory practices — Yelp not only perpetuates these unethical practices but also undermines consumer trust and severely impacts independent venues by diverting sales from legitimate ticketing sources,” NIVA said in a statement.

A problem since 2016

“It is fraud”

Yelp first partnered with TicketNetwork in 2016 to offer “a one-stop shop for high-demand entertainment tickets.” That partnership continued despite over a hundred 1-star reviews on Yelp, the platform’s lowest rating.

“It is fraud!,” wrote one Yelp user last month. “Be aware of this site who are scammers! They double the price for all the the events and refuse for refund. Stay away!!!!”

Find Yelp’s reaction and dueling TicketNetwork and NIVA responses to the takedown below.

Concerns highlighted in NIVA’s letter to Yelp included:

• Sale of non-existent or inaccurately listed tickets: “Many consumers have been sold tickets for events that either do not exist or have incorrect dates and times, leading to confusion and disappointment.”
• Lack of transparency in ticket details: “Tickets are often sold without specifying the section or seat, leaving consumers in the dark about what they are purchasing.”
• Sale of speculative or fake tickets: “Tickets sold through Yelp’s platform are often not in the possession of the reseller, with many being outright fraudulent.”
• Price gouging: “Tickets are regularly sold at 2-15 times the face value, even when tickets at face value are still available directly from the venue’s legitimate ticketing platform.”

“Yelp has a duty to the communities it serves, yet its platform is currently complicit in predatory ticket sales that exploit consumers and undermine independent venues,” said Stephen Parker, Executive Director of NIVA. “This is not just a matter of business ethics; it’s about protecting the cultural makeup of our communities. By partnering with a company like TicketNetwork, which has a long, documented history of legal troubles and unethical behavior, Yelp is facilitating a system that preys on consumers and undermines the integrity of the live entertainment industry.”

Read the full NIVA letter to Yelp here. 

Yelp Responds

In response to NIVA’s letter, a Yelp spokesperson told Pollstar, “For 20 years, Yelp’s mission has been to connect people with great local businesses, including independent venues. We thank NIVA for bringing their concerns about TicketNetwork to our attention and have taken immediate steps to turn off that integration.”

On Wednesday afternoon, Yelp updated its statement to the press to include that they had “removed that (TicketNetwork) integration.”

TicketNetwork Reacts & NIVA Bites Back

On Wednesday afternoon, Yelp’s former partner ticket reseller TicketNetwork issued a lengthy statement erroneously questioning NIVA’s motives and independence:

“It is unfortunate to see the consumers on Yelp’s platform lose access to a free and independent marketplace hosting resale tickets to events across the globe.”

“The extremely biased letter from the so-called “independent” organization referenced in your article regurgitates talking points generated by a company currently being sued as an illegal monopoly by the Department of Justice and Attorneys General representing more than 296 million Americans. They are a desperate attempt to distract consumers and lawmakers from the real causes of wildly surging prices for live events – centralized, coordinated control by a handful of major players working together to squash consumer choice.”

“Independent marketplaces regularly feature tickets offered at far less than the original sold price from the box office, saving consumers millions of dollars every year. Despite a coordinated industry effort to paint any platform not subject to direct artist management or promoter control as offering “fake” or “counterfeit” tickets, marketplaces like TicketNetwork guarantee that consumers will receive the tickets purchased, a suitable replacement (subject to buyer approval), or a full refund.”

“NIVA and other industry astroturfing efforts are pushing for legislation designed to enhance Live Nation Entertainment’s allegedly monopolistic dominance of ticketing by extending it to ticket resale. TicketNetwork, joined by other independent marketplaces and numerous consumer advocacy groups urge support for true reform in ticketing, either isolated to true “all-in” price transparency TICKET Act as passed by the House of Representatives, or via the comprehensive reforms promised by the BOSS and SWIFT Act championed by the late Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey.”

“their falsehoods won’t fool anyone”

NIVA Executive Director Stephen Parker responded: “NIVA was founded to save the independent live industry, which is made up of mom-and-pop businesses across the nation. These stages, their employees, and artists needed a collective voice to fight for survival during the COVID shutdowns.”

“NIVA, in fact, is an organization that stands as a counterweight to the anti-competitive practices of publicly-traded, multinational conglomerate promoters.”

“It is no surprise that TicketNetwork is spreading disinformation about the small businesses and nonprofits that make up the independent live community to distract from the price gouging and fraud rampant on their legally-fraught platform. We’re certain their falsehoods won’t fool anyone.”

Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor.