Ticketmaster is a website dedicated to the selling and re-selling of event tickets. Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation, sell nearly 500 million tickets every year for concerts, sports, and more.
But how accessible is it? Let's look at what Ticketmaster does well in terms of digital accessibility and what it could do better.
What Ticketmaster does well
Color contrast refers to the difference in brightness or color between text and its background, and WCAG requires a ratio of 3:1 for large text and 4.5:1 for all other text — with some exceptions — to optimize contrast for better visual results. Color contrast is important because people with visual disabilities can have difficulty perceiving content when the contrast is not sufficient. With a contrast of 6.2:1, Ticketmaster’s design exceeds these requirements, but color accessibility is just one facet of digital accessibility.
Ticketmaster is keyboard navigable, which is critical for people who use a keyboard rather than a mouse for navigation. This can include people with physical or mobility disabilities or those who use screen readers. There is also a clear focus indicator, meaning that it is clear where a user is on the page when using keyboard navigation.
Ticketmaster is also well organized. Tickets are categorized by event type and further divided into subcategories from there, so users won’t get overwhelmed by options that are unrelated to what they’re looking for. The flow of the website is logical and stays the same on each page, meaning that there are no major changes in layout when you navigate to different areas of the website. Links are styled, and reaching the purchase page is straightforward.
Where Ticketmaster can improve
Though the initial user experience is fairly smooth, completing a purchase is where the accessibility issues begin, especially for high-profile or popular events. There’s often a time limit for checking out, which can create a barrier for users with disabilities who may need additional time to complete the process. If the timer runs out, a customer loses the tickets they had selected, which can be frustrating and, even if unintentionally, results in unequal access.
Additionally, there is sometimes a queue for popular artists. Ticketmaster calls this the Smart Queue, and it requires a user to actively monitor their device for the entire time they are in the queue, or they may lose out on a chance at tickets. For longer queues, like those for Taylor Swift, this could be problematic for people with disabilities that prevent them from being able to be at a computer or stare at a tablet or phone for long periods.
Both of these issues could be mitigated if Ticketmaster allowed users purchasing accessible seats to skip the queue and not be limited by a timer, but as of writing, that is not allowed.
Accessible tickets
Ticketmaster does have a process for purchasing accessible tickets. There are currently two ways to do so: straight through Ticketmaster’s website or app, or by calling Ticketmaster’s accessible seating number. Calling may be a way to circumvent the issues that exist with purchasing tickets online, but only if a person is buying accessible seats, and only if they don’t have a disability that makes phone calls impossible.
It’s also important to note that not all venues offer accessible tickets through Ticketmaster, so this option isn’t available for every event. It’s not a standardized solution by any means, but it may suffice in some cases.
Conclusion
Though Ticketmaster does some things right from a design standpoint, the actual ticket-buying process is less than accessible and could use some work. There are some ways to get around the accessibility issues, but they’re not foolproof, and Ticketmaster needs to implement more alternative options to assist customers with disabilities who are purchasing tickets.
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