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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and seven states sued Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation Entertainment, on Thursday, for allegedly failing to crack down on ticket resellers and “engaging in illegal ticket resale tactics” by selling the “illegally harvested tickets at a substantial markup in the secondary market, causing consumers to pay significantly more than the face value of the ticket.” Fast Company has reached out to Ticketmaster and Live Nation for comment and is awaiting their response. The FTC press release alleged Ticketmaster used “deceptive pricing tactics” and earned “hundreds of millions selling tickets acquired illegally by brokers” which cost consumers “billions of dollars in inflated prices and additional fees.” The agency further alleged in a complaint that California-based Ticketmaster and its parent company “deceived artists and consumers” by engaging in “bait-and-switch pricing” by advertising lower prices for tickets than what consumers must pay to purchase tickets; imposing “strict limits” on the number of tickets consumers could purchase for an eventeven though ticket brokers “routinely and substantially exceeded those limitsand sold millions of tickets on its platform, “often at much higher cost to consumers.” The FTCs complaint alleged Ticketmaster’s practices violate the FTC Acts prohibition on deceptive acts or practices in the marketplace and the Better Online Ticket Sales Act (BOTS Act)and is seeking civil penalties, plus any additional monetary relief the court finds appropriate. Ticketmaster is the leading provider of concert and event tickets. Founded in 2010, following the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. promotes, operates and manages ticket sales for live entertainment in the U.S. and internationally. President Donald Trump made it clear in his March Executive Order that the federal government must protect Americans from being ripped off when they buy tickets to live events, FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson said in a statement. It should not cost an arm and a leg to take the family to a baseball game or attend your favorite musicians show. Shares of Live Nation (LYV) were down over 2.5% in midday trading on Thursday at the time of this writing. Fast Company previously reported the FTC filed a lawsuit over the summer alleging brokers illegally scooped up tickets for Taylor Swifts Eras Tour and resold them for millions in profit; and on a backlash over Oasis ticket sales. Live Nation Entertainment financials For the second quarter for 2025, ending on June 30, Live Nation Entertainment reported revenue of $7 billion, up some 16%, an increase year-over-year with an operating income of $487 million, up 4%. It reported an earnings-per-share (EPS) of $0.41, which missed estimates of $1.08 by $0.67. It had a market capitalization of 38.74 billion at the time of this writing.
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E-Commerce
Hyundai just issued two separate recalls on its Palisade and Ioniq 6 vehicles, totaling more than 600,000 cars that might not be road safe. The first recall, which constitutes the bulk of the total affected vehicles, is related to potentially faulty seat belts. The second is due to a defect on some electric models that could result in their charging port panels detaching on the road. Heres what to know about the two recalls: Whats happened? Both recall notices were published on September 12 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The first recall notice concerns an estimated 568,580 Hyundai Palisade vehicles. Per the description, Hyundai found that The seat belt buckles in the driver, passenger, and second-row window seats may fail to latch, which could increase the risk of passenger injury during a crash. The second notice is related to an additional 31,042 Ioniq 6 EVs. This model is being recalled because its charging port doors have been found to detach, which could create a road hazard for other vehicles. Which cars are covered under the recall? The two affected models are: Palisade vehicles sold between 2020 – 2025, NHTSA ID Number 25V607000 Ioniq 6 vehicles sold between 2023 – 2025, NHTSA ID Number 25V606000 What should I do if I own a recalled model? For those who own a recalled Palisade, the NHTSA notes that Passengers are advised to insert the belt firmly into the buckle with a quick and direct motion, pulling on the belt to confirm the seat belt is fully secured, until the recall remedy is performed. Hyundai dealers will inspect and replace any faulty seat belt buckle for free. In the case of the Ioniq 6, owners can likewise bring their vehicle to a Hyundai dealer to have additional adhesive applied to the charging port door for free. Hyundais recall number for the Ioniq 6 and Palisade are 282 and 283, respectively. The companys customer service can be reached at 1-855-371-9460.
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E-Commerce
Its not an easy time to be a documentary filmmaker. Its getting harder to sell political contentat exactly the time when that storytelling is arguably needed most. Thats one of the reasons that Alex Gibney, the documentarian behind films like the Oscar-winning Taxi to the Dark Side, partnered with Wendy Schmidt, the philanthropist, earlier this year. Schmidt invested in a majority stake in Jigsaw Productions, Gibney’s company, in February. At this weeks Fast Company Innovation Festival, the partners talked about how theyre confronting the challenge of reaching audiences. We believe that at this moment in time, with growing media consolidation, what’s ending up happening is actually a wall is being built between independent creators and audiences who want to see that material, Gibney said. There is a kind of algorithmic twisting of content, in a way, that I think is interfering with that exchange between creators and viewers. Jigsaw Productions struggled to find a distributor for its recent film The Bibi Files, about the bribery and fraud trial of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Right now, it can be streamed on Jolt.film.) Other producers have faced the same challenge. No Other Land, a film about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, won an Academy Award last year but couldnt find a U.S. distributor. Schmidt’s investment in the company is helping it continue its work as it focuses on how to get films in front of audiences. For Schmidt, the partnership was a natural fit. Before she was a billionaire philanthropist as the wife of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, she was a journalist. She recognizes the power of storytelling to help audiences make sense of the worlds biggest challenges. We’ve been looking to invest in some kind of production company for a while to amplify the impact of the work we do in philanthropy, Schmidt told the Innovation Festival audience. There are so many issues that are really of critical importance to human life right now that are not represented well in any films. We have an opportunity to help educate people and to help bring voices into our public arena that are not heard from. And we’ve encountered these people for the last 20 years in our philanthropy, and there’s a way to give them a voice in film. Jigsaw will now work on more projects related to climate change and ocean health, issues that are priorities for Schmidt. She’s also helping the company brainstorm new approaches to distribution. There’s a need for more innovation in the industry, Gibney says, similar to the way Bookshop.org has helped indendepent local bookstores compete with Amazon. Documentaries have a critical role to play now, Schmidt says. “Film, as Robert Redford made the observation many years ago, is one of the most direct ways to reach peopleto reach their hearts, to help them make sense of the world they’re in, and then hopefully drive them to actions that can make them feel part of a solution instead of being part of a problem,” she says. “I think that’s the moment we’re in.”
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E-Commerce
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