EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Ticketmaster agreed Monday to change its online sales process after it directed people seeking Bruce Springsteen tickets to a subsidiary that charged up to 50 times the face value.

Ticketmaster reached a settlement with New Jersey, where the Springsteen concert in question had been scheduled, said state Attorney General Anne Milgram. The changes apply to all Ticketmaster sales nationwide, she said.

Ticketmaster said in a statement Monday that the problem over the May 21 and May 23 concerts at East Rutherford's Izod Center was caused by a software glitch. The "voluntary agreement" with the attorney general just formalizes changes the company had already implemented, the company said.

Ticketmaster did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

When the tickets went on sale Feb. 2, Springsteen ticket seekers were redirected from the main Ticketmaster site to TicketsNow, a subsidiary. Milgram said at the time that redirecting them might have violated the state's consumer fraud act.

Springsteen said on his Web site that he and the E Street Band were "furious." A spokesperson for the musician did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday.

Ticketmaster did not admit wrongdoing but agreed to pay the state $350,000, Milgram said. The company will also compensate ticket holders who complained and change how it handles secondary sales, she said.

Milgram says she plans to further investigate the resale market — largely dominated by ticket brokers who buy in bulk and resell at higher prices.

"What is critical is that consumers understand what is happening on any Internet site during a sale of tickets," Milgram said. "The (Ticketmaster) Web site suggested that consumers could continue their search on TicketsNow, making it seem there was no difference in the two markets when, in fact, of course there is."

Milgram said her office received about 2,200 complaints from people unable to buy Springsteen tickets for a face-value price of $65 or $95. They were instead directed to TicketsNow, where tickets retailed for $200 to $5,000 apiece.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said he was studying Monday's settlement but would continue an independent investigation into Ticketmaster sales of Springsteen tickets in Connecticut.

The settlement comes as Ticketmaster faces scrutiny for a proposed merger with the concert promotion giant LiveNation. The merger will be the subject of congressional hearings Tuesday in Washington.

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., has said he thinks the merger would violate antitrust rules by giving Ticketmaster a near-monopoly on the concert ticket market. Schumer said Monday that he welcomed the New Jersey settlement.

"While we are pleased Ticketmaster has acknowledged its mistake ... giving Ticketmaster near total control over the distribution of concert tickets here in New York and across the country is a recipe for disaster," he said.

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Associated Press writer David Collins in Hartford, Conn., contributed to this report.