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Taylor Swift Tour Chaos Spurs Calls to Probe Ticketing Industry

Singer Taylor Swift arrives to speak at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
Singer Taylor Swift arrives to speak at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
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Taylor Swift Tour Chaos Spurs Calls to Probe Ticketing Industry

Singer Taylor Swift arrives to speak at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
Singer Taylor Swift arrives to speak at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)

When Taylor Swift announced her first tour in five years, Jacob Landry couldn't wait to jump in line to see his favorite artist take the stage.

But after diligently registering for and receiving a presale code, the 20-year-old jazzed for his first concert ever was confronted with a massive queue, site glitches and soaring costs.

Landry's experience was far from unique: thousands of social media users reported similar experiences, including 19-year-old Kathryn Berry, who told AFP the process that ultimately left her with nosebleed seats in Nashville turned into a "thirteen-hour ordeal."

Berry said she's "happy I got tickets, but definitely holding a grudge against Ticketmaster for a while."

For many music fans that grudge is longstanding.

The American ticketing industry, which the company Ticketmaster overwhelmingly dominates, has for years left concertgoers frustrated by hidden fees, soaring costs, rampant scalpers and limited tickets due to presales.

Swifties flooding ticketing sites linked to by Ticketmaster described crashes, outages, and other snafus, and many who were granted presale codes ultimately couldn't nab tickets.

Cody Rhodes said his cousin received a code granting access to buy seats for Swift's May show in Philadelphia, but after waiting five hours they were booted out of the queue.

By the time they got back through the line, there were no tickets left.

"I was FLOORED," the 23-year-old told AFP. "It was kind of funny at first like wow haha Taylor is so popular everyone wants to see her! Queen!"

"But every passing hour I was realizing the seriousness of it."

Rhodes said he'll try again when the general sale opens on Friday, saying his loose budget is $400 per ticket.

"That is a lot of money for us really, but we are huge fans and have waited so long," Rhodes said, but added he's already seeing resale tickets in the $2,000 to $9,000 range for the kinds of seats they were hoping for.

"Ticketmaster is a money-hungry service with little to no regard to real fans. I think they will allow price gauging since it allows them to take advantage of situations like this," he said.

'Unchecked monopoly'
Ticketmaster did not immediately respond to an AFP interview request, but in a statement Tuesday the company said waiting fans should "please hang tight," citing "historically unprecedented demand" from millions.

The company also delayed one of the presales a full day.

The havoc spurred comment from a number of lawmakers, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Richard Blumenthal, who urged an investigation into the "state of competition in the ticketing industry."

In 2010, Ticketmaster and the event promotion company behemoth Live Nation merged, which Congressman David Cicilline on Tuesday dubbed "an unchecked monopoly."

He and other legislators in 2021 called for a Justice Department probe into "Live Nation's efforts to jack up prices and strangle competition."

Swift fans have an enormous online presence and a zeal that leaves them well-positioned to call attention to their plight, but Krista Brown -- an analyst at the American Economic Liberties Project, which has urged unwinding the merger -- said the chaos "is just the latest example."

"This isn't about one artist's concert or one website crashing," Brown told AFP.

"Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment have a monopoly over the industry that lets it regularly abuse its power, leaving customers, artists and venues at its mercy."

Live Nation recently has reported soaring demand after several pent-up pandemic years, saying ticket sales are up 37 percent compared to 2019.

But while fans have complained of skyrocketing costs -- Bruce Springsteen show prices in the thousands of dollars triggered uproar earlier this year -- Ticketmaster responded to a recent query from Representative Bill Pascrell by blaming the resale ticketing market, and saying that "promoters and artist representatives set pricing strategy and price range parameters."

"As the resale ticketing market has grown to more than a $10 billion industry over the past few years, artists and teams have lost that revenue to resellers," Ticketmaster said, saying event organizers were trying to "recapture that lost revenue" via "market-based pricing."

Landry said he was originally willing to pay around $300 to see Swift, but with fees the final price landed at a $569.

He dipped into his savings to afford a spot.

Landry said he's feeling "relieved" now and that while the "process was ridiculous," it was worth it to see Swift's Arlington, Texas show: "I literally adore her."

And as Rhodes anxiously awaits the general sale's opening, he's hoping for a "crackdown" on Ticketmaster.

"Using another ticketing service is hardly an option," he said.

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Entertainment

Sony Buys a Majority Stake in the ‘Peanuts’ Comic for $457 Million from Canada's WildBrain

Sony Corp. President Kenichiro Yoshida speaks as characters from "Peanuts" are shown at a press conference at the company's headquarters Tuesday, May 22, 2018, in Tokyo. (AP)
Sony Corp. President Kenichiro Yoshida speaks as characters from "Peanuts" are shown at a press conference at the company's headquarters Tuesday, May 22, 2018, in Tokyo. (AP)
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Sony Buys a Majority Stake in the ‘Peanuts’ Comic for $457 Million from Canada's WildBrain

Sony Corp. President Kenichiro Yoshida speaks as characters from "Peanuts" are shown at a press conference at the company's headquarters Tuesday, May 22, 2018, in Tokyo. (AP)
Sony Corp. President Kenichiro Yoshida speaks as characters from "Peanuts" are shown at a press conference at the company's headquarters Tuesday, May 22, 2018, in Tokyo. (AP)

Happiness is taking control of a beloved comic strip.

Sony is buying a 41% stake in the Charles M. Schulz comic “Peanuts” and its characters including Snoopy and Charlie Brown from Canada's WildBrain in a $457 million deal, the two companies said Friday.

The deal adds to Sony's existing 39% stake, bringing its shareholding to 80%, according to a joint statement. The Schulz family will continue to own the remaining 20%.

“With this additional ownership stake, we are thrilled to be able to further elevate the value of the 'Peanuts' brand by drawing on the Sony Groupʼs extensive global network and collective expertise,” Sony Music Entertainment President Shunsuke Muramatsu said.

“Peanuts” made its debut Oct. 2, 1950 in seven newspapers. The travails of the “little round-headed kid” Charlie Brown and pals including Linus, Lucy, Peppermint Patty and his pet beagle Snoopy eventually expanded to more than 2,600 newspapers, reaching millions of readers in 75 countries.

The strip offers enduring images of kites stuck in trees, Charlie Brown trying to kick a football, tart-tongued Lucy handing out advice for a nickel and Snoopy taking the occasional flight of fancy to the skies. Phrases such as “security blanket," “good grief” and “happiness is a warm puppy” are a part of the global vernacular. Schulz died in 2000.

Sony acquired its first stake in Peanuts Holdings LLC in 2018 from Toronto-based WildBrain Ltd. In Friday's transaction, Sony's music and movie arms signed a “definitive agreement” with WildBrain to buy its remaining stake for $630 million Canadian dollars ($457 million).

Rights to the “Peanuts” brand and management of its business are handled by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Peanuts Holdings.

WildBrain also owns other kids' entertainment franchises including Strawberry Shortcake and Teletubbies.

Entertainment

‘Sinners,’ ‘Wicked: For Good,’ ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Advance in Oscars Shortlists 

US film director Ryan Coogler poses on the red carpet upon arrival for the European Premiere of "Sinners" at Cineworld Leicester Square, central London, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
US film director Ryan Coogler poses on the red carpet upon arrival for the European Premiere of "Sinners" at Cineworld Leicester Square, central London, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
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‘Sinners,’ ‘Wicked: For Good,’ ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Advance in Oscars Shortlists 

US film director Ryan Coogler poses on the red carpet upon arrival for the European Premiere of "Sinners" at Cineworld Leicester Square, central London, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
US film director Ryan Coogler poses on the red carpet upon arrival for the European Premiere of "Sinners" at Cineworld Leicester Square, central London, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)

Ryan Coogler’s bluesy vampire thriller “Sinners,” the big screen musical “Wicked: For Good” and the Netflix phenomenon “KPop Demon Hunters” are all a step closer to an Oscar nomination.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released shortlists for 12 categories Tuesday, including for best song, score, international and documentary film, cinematography and this year’s new prize, casting.

“Sinners” and “Wicked: For Good” received the most shortlist mentions with eight each, including makeup and hair, sound, visual effects, score, casting and cinematography. Both have two original songs advancing as well. For “Wicked” it’s Stephen Schwartz’s “The Girl in the Bubble” and “No Place Like Home.” For “Sinners,” it’s Ludwig Göransson, Miles Caton and Alice Smith’s “Last Time (I Seen the Sun),” and Göransson and Raphael Saadiq’s “I Lied to You.”

The “KPop Demon Hunters” hit “Golden,” by EJAE and Mark Sonnenblick, was another shortlisted song alongside other notable artists like: Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner for “Train Dreams”; John Mayer, Ed Sheeran and Blake Slatkin for the “F1” song “Drive”; Sara Bareilles, Brandi Carlile and Andrea Gibson for “Salt Then Sour Then Sweet” from “Come See Me In the Good Light"; and Miley Cyrus, Simon Franglen, Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt for “Dream as One” from “Avatar: Fire and Ash.” Diane Warren also might be on her way to a 17th nomination with “Dear Me” from “Diane Warren: Relentless.”

One of the highest profile shortlist categories is the best international feature, where 15 films were named including “Sentimental Value” (Norway), “Sirât” (Spain), “No Other Choice” (South Korea), “The Secret Agent” (Brazil), “It Was Just an Accident” (France), “The Voice of Hind Rajab” (Tunisia), “Sound of Falling” (Germany) and “The President's Cake” (Iraq).

Notable documentaries among the 15 include “My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow,” “The Perfect Neighbor,” “The Alabama Solution,” “Come See Me in the Good Light,” “Cover-Up” and Mstyslav Chernov’s “2000 Meters to Andriivka,” a co-production between The Associated Press and PBS Frontline.

The Oscars' new award for casting shortlisted 10 films that will vie for the five nomination slots: “Frankenstein,” “Hamnet,” “Marty Supreme,” “One Battle After Another,” “The Secret Agent,” “Sentimental Value,” “Sinners,” “Sirāt,” “Weapons,” and “Wicked: For Good.” Notably “Jay Kelly and “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” did not make the list.

Composers who made the shortlist for best score include Göransson (“Sinners”), Jonny Greenwood (“One Battle After Another”), Max Richter (“Hamnet”), Alexandre Desplat (“Frankenstein”) and Kangding Ray (“Sirāt”).

For the most part, shortlists are determined by members in their respective categories, though the specifics vary from branch to branch: Some have committees, some have minimum viewing requirements.

As most of the shortlists are in below-the-line categories celebrating crafts like sound and visual effects, there are also films that aren’t necessarily the most obvious of Oscar contenders like “The Alto Knights,” shortlisted in hair and makeup, as well as the widely panned “Tron: Ares” and “The Electric State,” both shortlisted for visual effects. “Tron: Ares” also made the lists for score and song with Nine Inch Nails' “As Alive As You Need Me To Be”

The lists will narrow to five when final nominations are announced on Jan. 22. The 98th Oscars, hosted by Conan O’Brien, will air live on ABC on March 15.

Entertainment

Netflix Boss Promises Warner Bros Films Would Still be Seen in Cinemas

Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos poses during the avant-premiere of TV serie "Emily in Paris" season 5, at the Grand Rex, in Paris on December 15, 2025. (Photo by Blanca CRUZ / AFP)
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos poses during the avant-premiere of TV serie "Emily in Paris" season 5, at the Grand Rex, in Paris on December 15, 2025. (Photo by Blanca CRUZ / AFP)
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Netflix Boss Promises Warner Bros Films Would Still be Seen in Cinemas

Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos poses during the avant-premiere of TV serie "Emily in Paris" season 5, at the Grand Rex, in Paris on December 15, 2025. (Photo by Blanca CRUZ / AFP)
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos poses during the avant-premiere of TV serie "Emily in Paris" season 5, at the Grand Rex, in Paris on December 15, 2025. (Photo by Blanca CRUZ / AFP)

Netflix will continue to distribute Warner Bros. films in cinemas if its takeover bid for the storied studio is successful, the streaming service's chief executive Ted Sarandos said in an interview Tuesday in Paris.

"We're going to continue to operate Warner Bros. studios independently and release the movies traditionally in cinema," he said during an event in the French capital, while admitting his past comments on theatrical distribution "now confuse people".

Previously, Sarandos had suggested that the cinema experience was outdated, surpassed by the convenience of streaming.

The Netflix boss was being interviewed by Maxime Saada, head of France's Canal+ media group, in a Paris theater that was presenting Canal+'s projects for 2026, Agence France Presse reported.

Netflix only began to produce its own programs a dozen years ago, Sarandos explained, so "our library only extends back a decade, where Warner Bros. extends back 100 years. So they know a lot about things that we haven't ever done, like theatrical distribution."

In early December, Netflix announced that it had reached an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to acquire most of the group for $83 billion.

However, doubts remain about whether the deal will be approved by regulators, and in the meantime television and film group Paramount Skydance has made a counter-offer valued at $108.4 billion.

If Netflix's bid is successful, it would acquire HBO Max, one of the world's largest media platforms, and it would find itself at the head of a movie catalogue including the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings sagas, as well as the superheroes of DC Studios.