Amazon May Take On Ticketmaster With New Event-Ticketing Business

Though many have tried, no online ticket sellers have even come close to touching Ticketmaster. It doesn’t hurt that its parent company is Live Nation, which owns or operates many of the biggest concert venues and promotes the biggest touring acts. Is Amazon one of the few companies with enough size and reach to actually take on Ticketmaster? We might soon find out.

Reuters, citing sources familiar with the matter, reports that Amazon is looking to partner with venue owners to sell tickets to sporting games, concerts, and other events.

Amazon’s entrance into the event ticketing industry could come in a variety of avenues. One source tells Reuters that the company has been in talks with one league about selling tickets as a secondary market, akin to StubHub.

Or Amazon could try compete directly with Ticketmaster for that primary ticket market, hoping to get a taste of that $1.6 billion business.

Breaking into the ticketing market could prove to be difficult for Amazon. That’s because Ticketmaster is currently the exclusive seller of primary tickets for many of the top venues in the U.S., a number of which — as mentioned up top — are actually owned by Live Nation. According to the company’s website, it controls 196 concert venues, including the House of Blues and Fillmore chains, along with dozens of arenas and festival sites.

Additionally, one source tells Reuters that Amazon’s talks with some venues have stalled over issues related to customer data.

While owners want to know more about who is buying tickets for their events, Amazon doesn’t appear willing to share that information, the source notes.

Reuters reports that any future ticket-selling ventures from Amazon won’t be the first of its kind. The company currently sells tickets to shows in London’s West End.

In some cases, the company — which began to sell tickets in 2015 — has outsold possible U.S. rival Ticketmaster.