Taylor Swift fans had their time wasted and pockets emptied by Ticketmaster. Now they’re calling to break up the company’s live events monopoly – and joining the movement to crack down on monopolies, period.
by Bella DeVaan, Inequality.org
The anti-monopoly movement is having a moment. Gone are the days of associating evil market dominance with Standard Oil or Carnegie Steel, Bill Gates’ petulance during deposition, or how it feels to desperately mortgage Marvin Gardens because you landed at the hotel on Park Place.
As now-Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chair Lina Khan asserted five years ago in her seminal work, “Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox,” our government’s outdated enforcement standards “fail[ed] to register” monopolistic harm. Since then, millions more Americans have been awakened to the sinister power of monopolies in our economy – and the exciting political opportunities to rein them in.

Last week, legions of new anti-monopolists were born. They have enormous potential to change the game: shrewd social media skills, undying loyalty, and encyclopedic knowledge. They’re Taylor Swift’s superfans – and they just might be the reason that the government breaks up Ticketmaster.
The Swifties – as Swift’s stans are affectionately nicknamed – experienced the destructive power of the live event and ticketing monopoly firsthand. Hoping to procure pre-sale tickets to their favorite pop star’s upcoming tour, millions of fans waited in endless e-queues, only to be hit with sky-high ticket prices and exorbitant fees – if they were able to snag a ticket at all.
Recent Posts
“Arrest Now, Ask Questions Later”: Why Did L.A. ICE Agents Arrest and Jail U.S. Citizen Andrea Velez?
July 3, 2025
Take Action Now “They didn’t have vests that said ICE or anything. Their cars didn’t have license plates. … Just because of the color of our…
Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill Is Naked Class War
July 3, 2025
Take Action Now Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” trades tax cuts on millionaires for the dissolution of society.By Hamilton Nolan, In These Times…
Mayor Mamdani’s First Day, A Zero Hour Conversation With Richard Wolff
July 2, 2025
Take Action Now If elected, what would Mayor Mamdani do on his first day in City Hall? How would a democratic socialist govern as a big-city mayor?……
The U.S. Is Funding A Bloodbath At Gaza Aid Centers
July 2, 2025
Take Action Now The admin just gave $30M to GHF, the organization at the center of charges that Israel is weaponizing assistance and shooting at…