Canada Files $500 Million Class Action Lawsuit in Ontario Against Ticketmaster

Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc., the biggest ticketing company in the world, was sued in Canada for selling popular tickets at inflated prices, in violation of provincial laws.

The suit, filed in Toronto by Sutts, Strosberg LLP and Branch MacMaster Barristers and Solicitors on behalf of all people who purchased event tickets in Ontario from Ticketmaster or through reseller TicketsNow.com, seeks C$500 million ($411 million) in damages, said Luciana Brasil, a lawyer at MacMaster.

"We expect a very large number of claimants," Brasil said. "We're just estimating the damages."

Fan complaints that they were steered to TicketsNow, which offers tickets that are priced hundreds of dollars above face value, prompted a New Jersey congressman to call for a federal antitrust investigation into Ticketmaster sales practices. Attorneys general in that state and in Connecticut are looking into the matter. Bruce Springsteen has condemned the company for having "a pure conflict of interest."

The Canadian lawsuit was filed on behalf of Henryk Krajewski, a Toronto resident who bought two concert tickets for C$533.65, when their face value on Ticketmaster's Web site was C$133, Jay Strosberg, who with Brasil represents the plaintiff, said in a telephone interview.

Ticketmaster spokesman Albert Lopez didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the Canadian lawsuit.

Strosberg and Brasil plan to ask an Ontario judge to allow Krajewski to represent all the other ticket buyers in a group lawsuit. A hearing for the certification motion hasn't been set.

Ontario Law

Ticketmaster's fees and handling charges violate an Ontario law that prohibits the resale of tickets to events at a price that's greater than that printed on the ticket, Brasil said. The law also prohibits TicketsNow, which is owned by Ticketmaster, from selling tickets at greater-than-face value, she said.

Similar laws are in place in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba and the lawyers said they plan to file similar suits in those provinces.

Ticketmaster, based in West Hollywood, California, issued an apology Feb. 4 for having steered Springsteen fans to TicketsNow and vowed to refund them the price difference between the face value of tickets and those purchased through the reseller. Fans also will no longer be shown a link to the resale market unless the artist agrees, Ticketmaster said. source>>>

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