The Government’s competition watchdog has launched an investigation into how Ticketmaster handled the sale of tickets for the Oasis reunion concerts.
The Competition and Market Authority (CMA) said it was responding to concerns from fans about inflated prices and the short time they were given to make decisions.
CMA officials will scrutinise whether the sale of Oasis tickets by Ticketmaster “may have breached consumer protection law” through its “dynamic pricing” model.
The US-owned ticketing giant infuriated fans by inflating the price of some Oasis tickets from £135 to £350..
The CMA said “Consumer law is clear – ticket sales sites must be transparent in their dealings with consumers and give clear and accurate information about the price people have to pay. Failure to do so may breach the law. “
CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell, said: “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.
“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.”
CMA has asked fans to submit evidence of their experiences in buying Oasis tickets. Fans are being asked to provide their evidence on the CMA’s website and, where possible, to include any screenshots they may have taken as they progressed through the purchasing process.
The CMA set a deadline of 5pm on Thursday 19 September for evidence.
