U.K. is investigating Ticketmaster after Oasis tour prices surprised fans
British regulators launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over its sale of Oasis tickets for the Britpop band’s upcoming reunion tour, including the company’s use of “dynamic pricing” that increases costs to fans.
This past weekend, a crush of fans waited in hours-long queues on the platform to buy tickets to the band’s tour next summer before finding that prices had risen while they were in line due to the dynamic pricing system that hikes prices based on demand.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Thursday that it will look into whether Ticketmaster breached consumer protection law. CMA’s probe into the company’s Oasis ticket sales will include whether buyers were given “clear and timely information” explaining that the tickets could be subject to dynamic pricing and how that would affect prices. It will also look into whether people were put under pressure to buy tickets at unexpected prices within a short period of time.
The practice of dynamic pricing itself is not illegal, but the watchdog is investigating whether Ticketmaster was transparent about the system ahead of time.
“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,” the authority said.
In a statement to NPR, Ticketmaster said it’s committed to cooperating with the CMA.
Ticketmaster prices quadrupled due to dynamic pricing
Oasis warned buyers that tickets sold on the secondary resale market, where they were predictably sold for major profit, would be voided. But many fans took to social media to express their surprise that some tickets from the official seller Ticketmaster had jumped to more than four times the starting price, with $100 standing room tickets later costing $466 before fees.
Oasis said in a statement that lead band members Liam and Noel Gallagher didn’t know that dynamic pricing would be used in the ticket sales, the BBC reported.
“It needs to be made clear that Oasis leave decisions on ticketing and pricing entirely to their promoters and management,” the band said.
It added, “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.”
The tickets that went on sale Saturday for the band’s concerts in England, Ireland and Scotland, from July 4 through Aug 17, 2025, quickly sold out. On Wednesday, two more dates were added, for Sept. 27 and 28, 2025, at London’s Wembley Stadium. The invite-only sale will first be open only to people who didn’t get tickets in the initial Ticketmaster sale.
Dynamic pricing will not be used for those ticket sales, the Associated Press reported.
It’s not the first time the company has been under fire for its use of dynamic pricing. After a similar pricing controversy affected the ticket-buying process for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, the U.S. Justice Department sued Ticketmaster’s owner, Live Nation Entertainment, for its alleged monopoly on live entertainment.
NPR’s Isabella Gomez Sarmiento contributed to this story.
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