‘How much is too much?’: dynamically priced tickets and algorithm agency on the Ticketmaster platform

Victor Pires

Journal of Cultural Economy, 2025, vol. 18, issue 5, 724-735

Abstract: The present article reflects on algorithmic mediation in the dynamic pricing of concert tickets. Based on the implementation of so-called Platinum Tickets by Ticketmaster in the United States, the global leader in the sector, and the debate surrounding the opening of sales for Bruce Springsteen's tour in 2022, this paper aims to address ticket pricing as a controversy that brings to light broader issues in the live music market, such as digital scalping and its speculative pricing practices in secondary markets. Furthermore, it seeks to contribute to discussions on: (1) the algorithm as a market device (Muniesa [2007]. “Market Technologies and the Pragmatics of Prices.” Economy and Society 36 (3): 377–395; Muniesa, Millo, and Callon [2007]. “An Introduction to Market Devices.” The Sociological Review 55 (2_suppl): 1–12), (2) dynamic price calculation as a performative operation (Callon and Muniesa [2005]. “Peripheral Vision: Economic Markets as Calculative Collective Devices.” Organization Studies 26 (8): 1229–1250), and (3) how algorithmic agency articulates an attempt by the company to project neutrality and objectivity in pricing processes (Gillespie [2014]. “The Relevance of Algorithms.” In Media Technologies, edited by Tarleton Gillespie, Pablo J. Boczkowski, and Kirsten A. Foot, 167–194. The MIT Press; Guerra and D’Andréa [2021]. “Dimensões Algorítmicas Do Trabalho Plataformizado: Cartografando o Preço Dinâmico Da Uber.” E-Compós 24).

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/17530350.2025.2486006

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