How could the system for live event ticketing be improved?

Buying tickets for big music events like the Oasis reunion or Taylor Swift’s Eras tour is a hassle. That’s because fixed supply and fixed price are incompatible. Improvements to the system could be made – perhaps by using a ballot or flexible pricing, as airlines do – but nothing is perfect.

Why is it that ticket buying is such a hassle? Especially when you might think that ticket sellers would want to make the process quick and painless, like making a purchase with an online retailer such as Amazon.

In an article for the Economics Observatory, Professor Michael Waterson explains the economics of the music industry.

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