A new class action lawsuit has been filed against Ticketmaster [285 articles]” href=”https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/companies/live-nation/ticketmaster/”>Ticketmaster alleging its website deploys unauthorized surveillance tools that violate California privacy laws.
The latest complaint filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California on Monday (January 5), only listed Ticketmaster as the defendant. The class action was led by Solano County, Calif. resident named Jeffrey Scruggs.
The complaint, which you can read here, claims that Ticketmaster employs advertising and analytics trackers from Google [1,057 articles]” href=”https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/companies/google/”>Google, Facebook [612 articles]” href=”https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/companies/facebook/”>Facebook, TikTok and Microsoft Bing, as well as those operated by Pinterest, Snap and Comscore, to illegally “collect, receive, and process” information from users such as IP addresses, page URLs, timestamps, and device or browser characteristics, among others.
The lawsuit alleges that the information transmitted through these technologies “is used for behavioral profiling, advertising measurement and attribution, personalization, audience segmentation, and identity-linked tracking.”
“[Ticketmaster] deploys these technologies without judicial authorization and without obtaining Plaintiff’s or Class Members’ consent, in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act,” according to the complaint.
“[Ticketmaster] deploys these technologies without judicial authorization and without obtaining Plaintiff’s or Class Members’ consent, in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act.”
Jeffrey Scruggs-led Class action lawsuit
The complaint cited stipulations under California Penal Code, which prohibit unauthorized use of “pen registers” and “trap and trace devices” that “collect routing and addressing metadata for commercial purposes” without the user’s consent.
The lawsuit claims Ticketmaster generates revenue through “surreptitious collection” of users’ personal information.
The proposed class action seeks to represent all California residents who accessed Ticketmaster’s website. California law allows for $5,000 in penalties per violation. The lawsuit said the total matter in controversy exceeds $5 million and there are over 100 members of the proposed class.
The latest lawsuit marks the latest Ticketmaster and Live Nation. Last week (December 30, 2025), defunct ticketing company Fanimal, based in Santa Monica, California, sued the two companies over their alleged anticompetitive tactics that drove it out of business.
Most recently on Tuesday (January 6), Ticketmaster and Live Nation [680 articles]” href=”https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/companies/live-nation/”>Live Nation have asked a federal judge to throw out the US Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit over ticket resales. The FTC sued the pair in September, arguing that they violated the BOTS Act by knowingly allowing ticket scalpers to buy up large blocks of tickets during on-sales.
Separately, the US Department of Justice sued the companies in 2024, seeking to break them apart after merging in 2010. A federal judge denied Live Nation’s motion to dismiss two major parts of that lawsuit in March 2025. The company then filed a motion asking for a quick end to that case in November.
Last month, a class action by consumers received certification, and another group of plaintiffs that includes Taylor Swift fans survived a dismissal motion in November related to the Eras Tour presale.
Music Business Worldwide
