NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Tennessee’s attorney general has joined a comprehensive federal lawsuit against Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation, accusing them of enabling ticket scalpers to increase prices and exclude regular fans.

The lawsuit, filed in California, claims that brokers set up fake accounts, used software to inundate the system with logins, and concealed their identities with proxy servers to evade detection. It further alleges that they purchased more tickets than permitted and sold them at inflated prices.

The complaint contends that Ticketmaster not only overlooked these schemes but at times also facilitated resales on its own platform. Attorneys argued this violates the federal BOTS Act.

“Ticketmaster’s history of bad actions is nothing new,” said Brandon Smith, a partner at political law firm Holtzman Vogel and former chief of staff for the Tennessee attorney general. “Many consumers recall this occurring when Taylor Swift’s Eras tour ticket sales commenced.”

In 2022, significant technical difficulties affected more than 3.5 million people trying to purchase tickets for Taylor Swift’s 2023 tour. The issues and overwhelming demand during presale even led to the cancellation of the originally scheduled public ticket sale.

“It was a complete disaster,” Smith said. “Instead of consumers and Swifties being able to purchase tickets for the Eras Tour, they were outbid by bots and fraudsters who secured the most valuable tickets and then significantly increased prices.”

The issue prompted the Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti to investigate Ticketmaster.

“What we later found out is that Ticketmaster knew this was happening, let this happen and actually profited after these scammers came in and distorted the market,” Smith said.

The lawsuit also claims Ticketmaster violated Tennessee’s Consumer Protection Act by promising to enforce purchase limits but failing to do so. It seeks injunctions to stop such practices and possible restitution for fans.

“It’s really just about something very simple: transparency,” Smith said. “Transparency in what you as a consumer have to pay, transparency in how venues and bookers promote concerts, and what will ultimately come to the benefit of consumers who want to go watch a concert in Music City.”

Smith added that the outcome could mark “a sea of change” for the industry, given Ticketmaster’s dominant 80% share of the concert ticket market.

The case will now move forward in federal court. Even if restitution is awarded, experts said fans should not expect refunds anytime soon.