StubHub reaches $10M settlement with FTC

StubHub has agreed to pay $10 million to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that it used deceptive ticket pricing by hiding mandatory fees until late in the checkout process, in violation of the FTC’s new Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (“junk fees” rule).

Key points:

• Conduct at issue: StubHub allegedly delayed complying with the FTC’s all‑in pricing rule, which requires displaying the full price—including all mandatory fees—upfront, and instead continued to show lower “base” prices with fees added only at checkout.

• Timing / NFL angle: The FTC contends StubHub intentionally slow‑rolled compliance to capitalize on a major “99th percentile traffic event” tied to the release of the NFL’s 2025 schedule, when ticket demand and site traffic spike. Competing platforms had implemented all‑in pricing during that same period.

• Rule background: The Unfair or Deceptive Fees rule was finalized in early 2025 and took effect May 12, 2025, requiring ticketing and other covered businesses to present total prices (including mandatory fees) upfront.

• FTC enforcement posture: The complaint alleges StubHub “publicly supported” all‑in pricing while “privately planning to violate it,” and ignored an FTC warning letter issued around May 14, 2025.

• Monetary relief: The $10 million will fund consumer redress; the money is expected to be returned to affected customers through a distribution or refund program.

• StubHub’s response: StubHub states it has “long supported all‑in pricing,” characterizes the issue as limited to a narrow window (about three days in May 2025), and says it disagrees with the FTC’s legal theory but is resolving the matter by refunding a portion of fees paid in those transactions.

From a compliance perspective, this is an early, high‑profile test of the FTC’s new junk‑fee / all‑in pricing rule, signaling that even short‑term deviations around major events (e.g., sports schedule drops, big concert on‑sales) can draw significant enforcement and consumer‑redress exposure.