Competition watchdog launches investigation into Oasis tickets sale

The competition watchdog has launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over Oasis concert ticket sales.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said its investigation would include how so-called ‘dynamic pricing’ may have been used and would scrutinise whether the sale of Oasis tickets by Ticketmaster may have breached consumer protection law.

Ticketmaster has said it does not set concert prices and its website states this is down to the “event organiser” who “has priced these tickets according to their market value”.

The investigation would consider whether Ticketmaster had engaged in unfair commercial practices, if people were given clear and timely information to explain that the tickets could be subject to so-called ‘dynamic pricing’, and if consumers 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.

The CMA said it would now engage with Ticketmaster and gather evidence from various other sources, which may include the band’s management and event organisers.

The CMA is also inviting fans to submit evidence of their experiences in relation to the purchase or attempted purchase of Oasis tickets.

It has asked fans 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 buying process.

The CMA said it should not be assumed that Ticketmaster had broken consumer protection 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.”

Earlier on Thursday, the CMA said it was “working at pace” to establish the facts around the Oasis tickets sale and keeping open the option of enforcement action for any breaches of consumer protection laws.

The authority said it was “aware of widespread concerns” regarding the sale of Oasis tickets by Ticketmaster, “and possibly other primary ticket sellers”, on August 31.

While it said dynamic pricing, which saw standard tickets for the reunion tour more than doubling from £148 to £355 on Ticketmaster, was “not in itself unlawful”, it said businesses “must not mislead customers about their prices, and must be transparent about how prices are set”.

In a letter to Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, CMA bosses wrote: “With this in mind, we are working at pace to establish the precise factual background to the sale of Oasis tickets on August 31, and we are keeping open all potential options for action.

“This includes potential enforcement action where we see evidence of possible breaches of consumer protection law.

“We will update you on any next steps in the coming weeks.”

The letter comes days after many fans were shocked by standard tickets for the band’s reunion tour more than doubling, prompting the Government and the CMA to pledge they will look into the use of dynamic pricing.

Meanwhile, others were left angry and disappointed after being left empty-handed, having waited in an online queue for hours to buy tickets.

On Wednesday, Oasis announced new Wembley Stadium dates using a new ticketing plan following the chaos over the weekend.

Liam and Noel Gallagher have extended their Live ’25 tour to include two more London shows on September 27 and 28 2025, using a new “staggered invitation-only ballot process” with applications to join the ballot opened first to those who were unsuccessful in the initial sale.

A statement said: “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.

“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.”

Ticketmaster has said it does not set concert prices and its website states this is down to the “event organiser” who “has priced these tickets according to their market value”.

The long-awaited Oasis reunion tour has attracted huge attention from fans because it will see the Manchester-formed Britpop band on stage together for the first time since their split in 2009.

On August 31, they revealed the general sale tickets for their UK and Ireland gigs had sold out in less than a day but many fans missed out as they battled website issues and being mislabelled as bots.

Following the ticket furore, the Advertising Standards Authority received 450 complaints about Ticketmaster adverts for the Oasis gigs.

A spokesman for the UK’s regulator of advertising said the complainants argue that the adverts made “misleading claims about availability and pricing”.

Published: 05/09/2024 by Radio NewsHub