Ticketmaster Faces Potential Litigation From UK Watchdog

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has threatened Ticketmaster with litigation over its alleged misleading of fans during the ticket buying process for Oasis’s UK comeback shows.

The allegations:

• In March the CMA published concerns that Ticketmaster may have misled fans in its pricing for the Oasis shows.

• In particular, it references the selling of Platinum tickets for 2.5 times the price of a standard ticket, without clarifying that they did not carry any additional benefits and were in some instances located in the same part of the stadium as standard tickets.

• As per The Guardian, the CMA also says fans weren’t alerted to the fact there were two categories of standing tickets at different prices, with many waiting in online queues without realizing they would be paying a higher ticket price.

The response:

• Ticketmaster responded to the CMA’s March allegations by saying it had changed “some aspects” of its ticket sale process.

• The alterations weren’t, however, enough to address the CMA’s full concerns.

• The CMA then provided Ticketmaster with a list of voluntary undertakings it required the ticketing giant to make.

Next steps:

• Ticketmaster’s response to those voluntary undertakings didn’t meet the CMA’s expectations.

• In a letter to the Business and Trade Select Committee the CMA wrote: “Ticketmaster has declined to provide undertakings in the terms sought by the CMA or indicate whether there is a form of undertakings which it would be prepared to offer.”

• Though the CMA has indicated a willingness to work with Ticketmaster to achieve a “voluntary resolution,” should the ticketing company not display a “clear and timely commitment to do so,” it will consider legal action.