Biden to host Airbnb, Ticketmaster execs in pursuit of ‘junk fee’ crackdowns

The White House is set to host executives from Live Nation, Airbnb and SeatGeek on Thursday to highlight President Joe Biden’s attempted crackdown on so-called “junk fees” — undisclosed, last-minute charges consumers are billed with when purchasing a product or service.

Live Nation and SeatGeek both agreed to restructure how they charge customers in advance of their executives’ meetings in Washington. 

Beverly Hills, California-based Live Nation is set to announce its intent to shift to upfront, “all-in” pricing by September, where service charges and other add-on fees will be included in the advertised costs of tickets at its venues. 

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Live Nation in particular found itself in hot water over its billing practices last November, after subsidiary Ticketmaster’s exorbitant asking prices for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour sparked a federal antitrust probe into the company.

SeatGeek, based in New York, is set to unveil interface updates that will allow users to more easily access full seating costs.

Airbnb, meanwhile, came out with its all-in pricing tool in December, shortly after the Biden administration began making “junk fees” a point of contention.

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“Today’s voluntary actions demonstrate that companies both big and small recognize the importance of providing consumers with honest, up-front all-in pricing,” the White House said in a statement, while knocking companies that “trick” their customers with “surprise fees at the end of checkout.”

National Economic Council director Lael Brainard added, “more companies are heeding the President’s call so that Americans know what they’re paying for up front,” positing that the move serves as a boon to personal savings and financial stability.

“Junk fees” have been the target of a prolonged pressure campaign by the Biden administration, with the president’s crusade against them beginning in the lead-up to last year’s midterm elections. 

Biden also made note of the issue at his State of the Union address earlier this year, and has previously called for government intervention to address it.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.