Government calls for review into ‘dynamic pricing’ after Oasis ticket fiasco
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has labelled the practice “depressing” and says she wants to end “rip-off resales” after fans were charged inflated prices by Ticketmaster for the 2025 reunion shows.
By Nick Reilly
The government has vowed to investigate the effects of dynamic ticket pricing, after the cost of tickets for Oasis‘ reunion tour went for more than double their original price during Saturday’s sale.
Fans of the Britpop icon sat in virtual queues for hours on Saturday morning as they attempted to get tickets to the group’s hugely anticipated UK and Ireland reunion tour next year.
When they got through after waiting for hours, however, many were faced with ticket prices that were much higher than their original face value.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has now labelled the practice “depressing” and says she wants to end “rip-off resales” and ensure that tickets are sold “at fair prices”.
Dynamic pricing was introduced by Ticketmaster in 2022, with the ticketing giant claiming that it was introduced to stop touts and ensure a greater percentage of money goes to the artists. It works on the model that prices will go up where demand is high, but many have accused Ticketmaster of ripping fans off.
MP Lucy Powell, the leader of the House of Commons, also said she had paid “more than I was expecting to pay” and that she did not approve of the dynamic pricing model.
According to the BBC, Nandy has now said ministers will look at “issues around the transparency and use of dynamic pricing, including the technology around queuing systems which incentivise it”.
The Lib Dem culture spokesperson, Jamie Stone MP, told The Guardian: “It is scandalous to see our country’s biggest cultural moments being turned into obscene cash cows by greedy promoters and ticketing websites. The Oasis ticket fiasco must be a watershed moment and lead to an official investigation, either by the watchdog or a parliamentary body.”
Ticketmaster are yet to respond.