Some Backstreet Boys fans consider refund after Live Nation relocates them to cheaper, still-obstructed seats

Some Backstreet Boys fans attending one of the group’s Toronto shows aren’t happy with their seat change after Live Nation relocated fans who unknowingly bought tickets that had an obstructed view.

Ticketmaster failed to indicate their seats had an obstructed view during presale period

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These Backstreet Boys fans say their 'obstructed view' seats were relocated to worse spots

October 29|

Duration

2:17

Some Backstreet Boys fans attending one of the group’s Toronto shows aren’t happy with their seat change after Live Nation relocated fans who unknowingly bought tickets that had an obstructed view.

Betsabe Bustillos from Welland, Ont., said she originally bought four seats in the second row of section 130 at Toronto's Rogers Centre during the presale period for around $1,300.

Days after the presale ended, dozens of fans flooded social media with complaints that Ticketmaster failed to indicate their seats had an obstructed view and that after the presale, similar seats were selling for a discounted price. That prompted calls for the vendor to issue an apology and rectify the problem, either through refunds or exchanges for different seats. 

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After seeing the reports on social media, Bustillos said she checked her own tickets, which, much to her surprise, had also been marked as partially obstructed. She says she then reached out to Ticketmaster, where she was told she would be relocated to an unobstructed seat.

Instead, Bustillos says she was moved to a row much farther back and the view from her new seats is also obstructed.

"This is insane," she said. "It's destroying the entire experience."

In a statement to CBC Toronto Thursday, Live Nation spokesperson Shabnum Durrani apologized for the situation. (Paul Sakuma/The Associated Press)

Rogers announced earlier this month that it was the organizer bringing the Backstreet Boys to Toronto in 2027. Its announcement offered Rogers customers "exclusive" access to the Oct. 5 presale.

Live Nation oversees the concerts, and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, operates the ticketing platform.

'There is no option at all': ticket holder

The Backstreet Boys are expected to play 12 shows across four consecutive weekends in Toronto, from February to March 2027.

In a statement to CBC Toronto Thursday, Live Nation spokesperson Shabnum Durrani apologized for the situation.

"We are always happy to work directly with fans to review individual concerns and explore available options," Durrani said. "We understand this has been frustrating and appreciate the patience of fans as we work to resolve these issues."

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Bustillos says a couple of friends backed out after they found out about the issues, meaning she was forced to sell two of the tickets. But she said she was really excited, which is why she’s not keen on a refund.

"That's not my goal. I want to go and I want to enjoy the concert," she said. "It's not great that we have to do all this work for something that we already paid for."

Bustillos says she will need to give Ticketmaster a response on whether she wants a refund or a relocation by Nov. 22. 

"There is no option at all," she said. "You go with this bad view or you don't and you stay home."

The Backstreet Boys are expected to play 12 shows across four consecutive weekends in Toronto, from February to March 2027. (backstreetboys.com)

"If I don't get the solution that is fair for me as a purchaser, as a buyer, for this ticket, I will definitely get a refund and not go and miss it, unfortunately," Bustillos added.

Customer hoped for more solutions

Backstreet Boys fan Giulianna Heto said she was also blindsided by the partially obstructed seating. She told CBC Toronto Friday she had to talk to three different people before she finally spoke with someone at Ticketmaster willing to help her with her two tickets. But the suggestion was far from ideal, Heto says.

"It came to, 'Oh, you should list it, sell it to get your money back,'" she said. "I was told several times in that call to lie and to not mention that it was obstructed."

"That's pretty crazy," she added. "It's not fair."

Heto says some of the solutions she would have appreciated include an ability to pick her new seating, a chance to change the date she’d be attending or a difference in the price between her old and new tickets.

"It should have been announced [as] obstructed. There's other concerts that were," she said. "I just want Ticketmaster [to] take ownership for it."

In a statement Friday, Durrani said the Ticketmaster team connected with Heto Thursday night and are "working with her to explore available options."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gabriela Silva Ponte has been with CBC Toronto since January 2025. Currently, she works as a web writer, but has previously taken on a variety of reporting roles in ethnic media newsrooms and at Toronto Metropolitan University. Gabriela graduated from TMU with a Bachelor of Journalism. You can reach her at gabriela.silva.ponte@cbc.ca.