Many were left furious after only being able to buy tickets at three times their price
The government has said it will look into the use of ‘dynamic ticket pricing’, following controversy over the cost of tickets to see Oasis next summer.
On Saturday, tickets for the Gallagher brothers’ huge reunion tour went on sale, with millions hoping to bag a ticket to one of the 17 dates the band are playing next July and August.
However, after queueing for hours to try and get tickets on Ticketmaster, many were left aghast when they finally got to the front of the queue. They found tickets were only available at much higher prices than they had been when they first went on sale that day.
Many were only given the option of purchasing ‘in demand’ standing tickets, for more than £350, three times more than the tickets had initially gone on sale for just hours earlier.
This was a result of something known as ‘dynamic pricing,’ which allows Ticketmaster to raise the price of tickets according to market demand.
The government has now announced it will be looking into the controversial practice as part of a wider consultation into ticket resale websites that had already been announced. This consultation will get underway in the autumn.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said it was “depressing to see vastly inflated prices excluding ordinary fans” from gigs.
The Labour minister said the government would look at “issues around the transparency and use of dynamic pricing, including the technology around queuing systems which incentivise it”, the BBC reports.
Dynamic pricing is not a new feature on Ticketmaster and is allowed under consumer protection laws.
The company has defended itself, saying it is down to the “event organiser” who “has priced these tickets according to their market value”.
Many have directed their anger towards Oasis for allowing this to happen, pointing out that the band could have rejected the dynamic pricing option.
Jonathan Brown, the chief executive of the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers, also insisted that prices would have been set “by artists and their management”.
Speaking to the BBC, he praised ticketing websites for coping with the “enormous demand” for Oasis tickets.
Oasis have not yet responded to the dynamic ticket pricing controversy.
