Ticketmaster’s Demand-Based Ticket Pricing Strategy Sparks Regulatory Scrutiny
Remember the uproar from Swifties when Ticketmaster’s presale fiasco led to an antitrust lawsuit from the Department of Justice? Well, Ticketmaster’s at it again — but this time, they’ve crossed the pond, and the audience is a bit older. Fans of ‘90s Britpop band Oasis (yes, the band’s first tour since 2009) logged on for presale tickets, only to be hit with a surprise: ticket prices skyrocketed during checkout.
- Ticketmaster reportedly used “dynamic pricing,” which saw tickets advertised at £148 ($195) more than double by the time fans reached checkout.
- A representative for Oasis said the band “at no time had any awareness that dynamic pricing was going to be used,” fueling even more anger towards the global ticketing platform.
In hot water: After initially staying silent, Ticketmaster told the New York Times on Friday that it does not have “algorithmic surge pricing technologies,” contradicting an earlier comment made by Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino in February. Regardless, Live Nation (Ticketmaster’s parent company) now faces a UK regulatory investigation into what caused the price jumps. This is just another day for the company, which has been at the center of high-profile ticketing issues involving everyone from Swift to Springsteen to Beyoncé. Last week, plummeted ~5% on the news.
