President Joe Biden is expected to announce on Thursday the concert cartel Ticketmaster/Live Nation and other companies have caved to pressure and will be forced to tell consumers upfront the cost of event tickets after years of scamming them with additional fees at checkout, CNN reports.
“President Biden has been working to lower costs for hardworking families by bringing down inflation, capping insulin prices for seniors, and eliminating hidden junk fees. More companies are heeding the President’s call so that Americans know what they’re paying for up front and can save money as a result,” said National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard in a statement.
That the cave by the companies, which include SeatGeek, xBk, Airbnb, TickPick, and DICE, comes before the Junk Fee Prevention Act, proposed by Biden in February and introduced by Arizona Dem Congressman Ruben Gallego in April, could even come to a vote is a mixed, if mostly good, bag. Obviously it’s awesome Biden can strong-arm some of the evilest sons of bitches into complying without any legislation – Ticketmaster/Live Nation is a very big get in particular given the recent outrage over the Taylor Swift tour shitshow. The downside is – surprise! – Republicans in the House don’t give a shit and would rather jerk off over gas stoves than wrangle in the companies and industries that are not voluntarily complying with the letter or spirit of the bill’s proscriptions.