The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over the sale of Oasis tickets.
It’s looking into concerns including how “dynamic pricing” may have been used.
Dynamic pricing meant that costs on the Ticketmaster website rose in line with demand.
The CMA is asking fans to share their experience to see whether they were given “clear and timely information” and whether consumer protection law was breached.
It will consider whether:
- Ticketmaster has engaged in unfair commercial practices which are prohibited under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008;
- People were given clear and timely information to explain that the tickets could be subject to so-called ‘dynamic pricing’ with prices changing depending on demand, and how this would operate, including the price they would pay for any tickets purchased;
- People were put under pressure to buy tickets within a short period of time – at a higher price than they understood they would have to pay, potentially impacting their purchasing decisions.
“It’s important that fans are treated fairly when they buy tickets, which is why we’ve launched this investigation. It’s clear that many people felt they had a bad experience and were surprised by the price of their tickets at check-out. We want to hear from fans who went through the process and may have encountered issues so that we can investigate whether existing consumer protection law has been breached,” said Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the CMA.
“The CMA also welcomes the government’s recent announcement that it will consult on measures to provide stronger protections to consumers in the ticketing sector, wherever they buy their tickets. This has been a priority focus for the CMA for several years, having previously taken enforcement action and recommended changes to improve the secondary tickets market. We are committed to working closely with government to tackle the longstanding challenges in the ticket market.”
The CMA said that it “should not be assumed that Ticketmaster has broken consumer protection law.”
However, it will also consider “whether it is appropriate to investigate the conduct of anyone else in relation to the matter.”
Yesterday Oasis released a statement about the ticketing controversy:
“[…] it needs to be made clear that Oasis leave decisions on ticketing and pricing entirely to their promoters and management, and at no time had any awareness that dynamic pricing was going to be used.”
In the release it continued:
“While prior meetings between promoters, Ticketmaster and the band’s management resulted in a positive ticket sale strategy, which would be a fair experience for fans, including dynamic ticketing to help keep general ticket prices down as well as reduce touting, the execution of the plan failed to meet expectations.
“All parties involved did their utmost to deliver the best possible fan experience, but due to the unprecedented demand this became impossible to achieve.”
Simon Tingle, Partner and Head of Regulatory at Gordons in Yorkshire said:
“Much of the nation were seemingly affected by the queues for Oasis Tickets last weekend. The variable pricing has drawn ire from various consumer pressure groups, but it’s worth remembering dynamic pricing itself is not a breach of consumer law and is an established practice in, for example, the transport industry, with airline flights.
“What would put this in potential breach of consumer law is where those joining the queue (which represents a transactional decision) were misled about the potential prices they would need to pay – i.e. they had the opportunity to purchase a ticket, but prices were higher than initially advertised, based on the related demand.
“Whilst dynamic pricing is not an area which will be changed by the most recent Digital Markets, Competitions and Consumers Act 2024, the new enforcement powers handed to the CMA represent a radical change in consumer law. Might a new emboldened CMA look to take on this matter, or will consumers have to roll with it? Watch this space.”
