Ticket resale marketplace StubHub on Friday filed its initial public stock offering. More than 40 million tickets were resold on StubHub last year, according to the company.
StubHub files IPO, acknowledges risks ahead
In its SEC IPO S-1 filing, StubHub said it generated $1.77 billion in 2024 revenue, up 29% year over year for a net loss of $2.8 million. That’s compared with $1.37 billion for 2023 and net income of $405 million.
StubHub applied to list its Class A common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “STUB.”
Increased Scrutiny & A Softer Concert Market
Secondary ticketing has recently drawn increasing scrutiny from state and federal regulators and legislators. StubHub is among the companies who responded with vigorous and well funded lobbying efforts which trade organizations like NIVA, NITO and the Fix The Tix coalition have fought to counter.
In its IPO filing, StubHub acknowledged that these efforts could have a negative impact on its business.
“artists, teams and promoters may attempt to disrupt the secondary ticketing market”
“Complying with this new set of regulations could result in increased costs and additional liabilities. Additionally, artists, teams and promoters may attempt to disrupt the secondary ticketing market through lobbying for such restrictions regarding secondary ticketing policies or partnering with other secondary ticketing marketplaces on an exclusive basis,” according to the S-1 filing.
“Our failure to comply with these laws and regulations could result in fines and/or proceedings against us by governmental agencies and/or consumers, which, if material, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations,” concluded the filing.
Also driving the timing of the IPO could be softer years ahead in the overall concert market. After several years of meteoric growth in live music, a recent analysis by Pollstar of the period of November 14, 2024 to February 12, 2025 point to a mixed 2025 for live music.
Read our analysis of the live music report here.
Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, a Berklee College Of Music professor and founder of the Skyline Artists Agency
