The federal NDP has some ‘Bad Blood’ with Ticketmaster, calling for an investigation into the company after bots and scalpers ramped up Taylor Swift concert ticket prices.

In a press release, the party said its critic for Innovation, Science & Economic Development Brian Masse wrote to the federal minister François-Philippe Champagne outlined the reasoning for the survey, noting that scalpers and bots were quick to buy the tickets and sold them at inflated prices.

“Mothers who have been saving up for a gift for their children and hard-working young people struggling to get ahead have been heartbroken to learn they can’t afford tickets,” Masse wrote.

“Instead, scalpers and bots have been allowed to scoop up these highly sought-after tickets and resell them for thousands of dollars each – far beyond the reach of ordinary people.”

Masse noted that Ticketmaster dominates the ticketing and event industry and uses dynamic pricing, resulting in high ticket costs. The company also has its own reseller platform, giving it little incentive to crack down on resellers and bots.

He added that The US has taken actionas an antitrust lawsuit was recently launched, with the aim of restoring competition by breaking up Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation.

Masse argued that not enough has been done to stop these practices in Canada.

“The Competition Bureau last investigated Ticketmaster in 2019. At that time I warned your government that the failure to go after Ticketmaster bots and resale practices gave them a free pass to continue their predatory practices against consumers,” he wrote.

“As a minister, you have the power to launch an inquiry into Ticketmaster and the practices of the ticketing industry, but you have stood by and done nothing.”

He pointed to the Liberal Party’s promise in Budget 2024 to work with provinces and territories to adopt best practices for ticketing and crack down on fraudulent retailers and reseller practices.

“Anyone who has tried to buy a concert ticket recently can tell you that this has been a failure,” Masse wrote.

The NDP added that the price has not stopped with tickets, as hotel prices in Vancouver and Toronto has skyrocketed meanwhile, Swift will be playing in those cities.

“At the same time, these hotels are sucking fans as they fail to give their employees a fair deal.”

In Canada, class action has filed against Ticketmaster Canada over delays in refunding customers for tickets they purchased for shows affected by the pandemic.

Canadian Taylor Swift fans has also sought to take action against the ticket seller, launching a petition demanding that Ticketmaster change its policy on resellers and its Verified Fan sign-up process.