The boss of Ticketmaster UK has defended the cost of tickets, telling MPs that he believes that are “very fairly priced”.
Andrew Parsons spoke to the politicians as he appeared before the Business and Trade Select Committee. It took place following the ticketing debacle that was spared last year, when the use of “dynamic pricing” left Oasis fans paying more than expected when trying to nab tickets for the reunion tour.
As well as facing extensive queues, many fans found themselves paying more than they predicted for tickets, with some going for over £300 – roughly £200 more than the price that was advertised.
The widespread backlash following the sale last summer saw many push for the use of dynamic pricing to be banned, and for sales platforms like Ticketmaster to be more up-front when listing fees.
Now, Parsons has told MPs that the prices set on the site are “fair” because people are willing to pay them. He also denied that ticket prices fluctuate during a general sale.
“Where differing price tiers [are] made available, that’s a choice of the event organiser. Selling a small amount of tickets at a higher-priced tier seems fairly reasonable,” he said, according to BBC News.
“We work closely with event organisers to be able to sell tickets at the prices that they’ve determined,” he added, going on to deny accusations that bots are included in the sale process. “There’s no technology-driven change to those prices. They are the prices which humans have agreed to. There’s not a computer or a bot behind it.”
Later, he told the committee that the efforts to capture the true “value” of the tickets prevent them from being snatched up by touts. “If we’re not able to [capture] that value, which the artist is doing in those instances, then that money is just going to go, and the tickets are going to be captured and gobbled up by touts,” he explained.
It is worth noting that the committee and Parsons did not refer to the Oasis ticket sale specifically, but rather discussed tickets as a whole. This comes as the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) is currently investigating the Britpop legend’s ticket sale from last summer, and looking to determine whether the platform breached consumer-protection law.
Elsewhere at the hearing, BBC reports that MP Charlie Maynard pushed for the CMA to launch a separate investigation into Live Nation’s “dominant market share”. In response, Parsons told the MPs that both Ticketmaster and Live Nation (who merged in 2010) already “have clear divides between how we operate on a daily basis”, and added that the ticketing market in the UK was “as competitive as any market in the world”.
He also criticised the suggestion that there should be a cap of up to 30 per cent on resale tickets, saying that the move would still allow touts “to be running a business”.
The latter suggestion was first put forward last month, when the government launched a public consultation that outlined a number of measures in the re-sale process to “better protect fans, improve access to live events and support the growth of the UK’s world leading live events sector”.
It came as part of a plan to “clamp down on ticket touts fleecing the public”, with touts reportedly costing music fans an extra £145million per year. It was particularly noticeable last year, when Oasis revealed plans to cancel more than 50,000 tickets to their reunion tour after they were sold via secondary ticket sites.
The clamping down on touts and dynamic pricing are just two examples of the efforts being made to ensure the survival of the UK’s live music scene. Elsewhere, a highly publicised ticket levy is set to come into action in 2025 – in which gigs at arena level and above use a portion of the money raised in ticket sales to help grassroots venues remain open.
The push for the levy comes after the Music Venue Trust highlighted the “complete collapse of touring” across the UK in recent years.
Although a decision is set to be made by the government in March, the levy has already begun to gather momentum. With huge names like Coldplay, Sam Fender and Katy Perry using their upcoming arena and stadium tours to support the UK’s smaller brethren.
The efforts come at a dire time for the UK’s live music scene too, as MVT’s annual report for 2024 showed that one venue was lost every two weeks last year, with nearly 44 per cent of their venues running at a loss and a near 20 per cent spike in venues in need of emergency help on the brink of closure.
You can find out more about the ticket levy and the ways that it will support grassroots venues and emerging talent here.
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