Ticket touts, dynamic pricing and unfair practices have plagued the UK live music sector. The Government is making moves to change this.

Last Friday, the UK Government unveiled plans to “tackle greedy ticket touts and give power back to fans.” The plan? A consultation that seeks input on potential new regulation of the ticket resale market, as well as the planned price cap on resale tickets announced by Kier Starmer before he was elected as Prime Minister.

While the plan largely focuses on resolving prevalent issues around ticket resale, there will also be dedicated attention paid to primary ticket sales. Dynamic pricing caused uproar around the Oasis reunion, highlighting that the system serves only ticket companies and not fans or artists.

Business Secretary, Jonathon Reynolds MP, announced the government’s plan, saying that, “From sports tournaments to Taylor Swift – all too often big events have been dogged by consumers being taken advantage of by ticket touts.” Noting that the current system only makes major ticket companies the winners, Reynolds stated, “These unfair practices look to fleece people of their hard-earned income, which isn’t fair on fans, venues and artists.”

Why does ticket reselling need reform?

As it stands, the ticket resale landscape is a frustrating and expensive one. Analysis by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) shows that tickets resold on secondary platforms are often marked up by over 50%, with Trading Standards investigations revealing cases where tickets were resold at prices as high as six times their original value. Additionally, research from Virgin Media O2 estimates that ticket touts collectively cost music fans £145 million annually.

A planned price cap would put a stop to these practices, restricting how much a ticket can be marked up from its face value cost.

The idea behind the cap is to make it more realistic for individuals to be able to buy concert tickets from people who have bought tickets but can no longer attend an event, rather than commercial touts hiking up prices as part of a business model. When Kier Starmer originally proposed the cap, he indicated it would be 10% above face value. The consultation is seeking input on the impact that a 0-30% cap would have.

There are also plans to limit the number of tickets that touts can resell for any one show. Depending on these caps and limitations, commercial ticket touting could potentially become unviable, leaving more primary tickets available for genuine fans.

Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy has said, “The chance to see your favourite musicians or sports team live is something all of us enjoy and everyone deserves a fair shot at getting tickets – but for too long fans have had to endure the misery of touts hoovering up tickets for resale at vastly inflated prices.”

How will dynamic pricing be scrutinised?

The UK Government’s consultancy will shine a light on dynamic pricing – a system designed to adjust ticket prices based on their demand. This system is meant to help sell unsold tickets, but commonly it causes nasty surprises for buyers in the shape on last minute price increases. Fans were disgruntled after queuing hours for Oasis tickets that were originally priced at £135 rose to £355.

The consultation will call for evidence that will help gather opinions on the effectiveness of the ticketing system in the live events industry for fans and assess whether the current measures adequately protect against unfair practices.

“Unfair” is certainly one word to describe the position fans are put in, forced to make high-pressure quick decisions between not seeing their favourite artists or spending money they can’t necessarily afford to.

While many ticket companies claim that dynamic pricing is used to inhibit touts, ticket price tend to skyrocket as a result of professional touts hoarding tickets. Supporting the consultation is UK Music Chief Executive Tom Kiehl, who has said, “Music lovers have been exploited for too long by a secondary ticketing market which is driven by greedy touts and automated bots charging rip-off prices and sucking money out of our sector.” Looking towards a brighter future, Kiehl also said, “This announcement should pave the way for greater transparency over ticketing for live events and ensure music fans can see their favourite acts at an affordable price.”

Summing up

This investigative action taken by the UK Government is a positive step toward addressing the ongoing challenges within the ticketing industry. By inviting public input, it opens the door to potential reforms that could enhance fairness, transparency, and accessibility for fans. This is an opportunity for all stakeholders, including artists, fans, and industry professionals, to have their voices heard and shape a system that prioritises genuine audience access over profit-driven exploitation.