1. There’s something about Taylor Swift and breakups.
Activists and lawmakers are renewing calls to split Ticketmaster and Live Nation after a fiasco over ticket sales for the pop superstar’s upcoming “Eras” tour, which is slated to kick off in March.
breakup:
n. 除分手外，还可指国家、同盟分离崩析。
fiasco: [fiˈæskoʊ]
n. 惨败，尴尬结局，关键在于令人尴尬。something that does not succeed, often in a way that causes embarrassment.
be slated to do: 预定;计划;安排
If something is slated to happen, it is planned to happen at a particular time or on a particular occasion.
eg: Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture...
* be slated: 严厉批评;猛烈抨击
If something is slated, it is criticized very severely.
eg: Arnold Schwarzenegger's new restaurant has been slated by a top food critic.
kick off: （事件、比赛、讨论）开始
If an event, game, series, or discussion kicks off, or is kicked off, it begins.
eg: The shows kick off on October 24th.
2. Live Nation, which merged with Ticketmaster in 2010, has faced longstanding criticisms about its size and power in the entertainment industry. People amplified their complaints this week when tickets for Swift tickets went on presale on Ticketmaster’s website.
longstanding:
a. 长期存在的；由来已久的. A long-standing situation has existed for a long time.
amplify:
v. 增强；加强. To amplify something means to increase its strength or intensity.
eg: The mist had been replaced by a kind of haze that seemed to amplify the heat.
薄雾散了，取而代之的是一种似乎更添酷热的烟霭。
3. Similarly, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., called Swift’s tour sale “a perfect example of how the Live Nation/Ticketmaster merger harms consumers by creating a near-monopoly,” in a Tweet posted Tuesday.
monopoly:
n. ~ (in/of/on sth) (business 商) 垄断 usua pl；独占，独有 usua sing
eg1: In the past central government had a monopoly on television broadcasting.
eg2: Managers do not have a monopoly on stress. 并不只是经营管理者有压力。
A good education should not be the monopoly of the rich. 良好的教育不应该成为富人的专利。
4. Others complained about the long wait times and confusion over “verified fan” tickets and presale codes. The verified fan program, which was established in 2017, was designed to keep tickets in the hands of actual fans and not resellers.
verify: v. 核实、证实
5. “Eras” tour tickets are priced from $49 to $450, with VIP packages starting at $199 and reaching $899. Secondary market prices can be seen ranging from $800 to $20,000 per ticket.2
secondary: a. 二手的。~ market 二手市场
6. “Despite promises of increased competition and consumer benefit, they now control 70% primary ticketing and live event venues market,” according to a coalition of activists called “Break Up Ticketmaster.” “They’re hiking up ticket prices, charging rip-off junk fees, and exploiting artists, independent venues, and fans. The Department of Justice can reverse this merger and bring competition back to the industry. Help us demand that they do.”
coalition:
n. 联盟、合作；结合 the act of two or more groups joining together
hike up: （尤指为方便行动）提起，拉起（衣物）；突然大幅上升
eg1: He hiked up his trouser legs. 他提起裤腿。
eg2: The landlord hiked up the rents. 房东涨了房租。
rip-off:
n. inf. 要加过高的货品；仿牌货 ~ (of sth)
eg1: $70 for a T-shirt! What a rip-off! 70块钱买一件T恤衫！太不值了！
eg2: The single is a rip-off of a 70s hit. 这首单曲是70年代的一首热门歌曲的翻版。
7. Swift’s latest tour, which comes on the heels of her record-breaking new album release “Midnights,” has set 52 dates so far, the singer’s largest tour to date. The “Eras” tour could break Swift’s own record for gross ticket sales in North America.
on the heels of: 紧跟其后
eg: News of rising unemployment followed hard on the heels of falling export figures.
出口数字下降之后紧接着就是失业率上升的消息。