Understanding ‘Dynamic Pricing’ and Why It Angers Oasis Fans

Thousands of Oasis fans faced long waits in virtual queues this weekend to purchase tickets for the British band’s reunion shows next summer. However, many of these fans were met with unexpected price hikes due to a “dynamic pricing” scheme.

Fans who waited over three hours to purchase tickets, expecting to pay the initially advertised rate of £148.50 ($195.10), were startled to find that the prices had surged to £355.20 ($467.00).

Dynamic pricing, also known as surge pricing, is a strategy where businesses increase prices during peak demand periods. This approach is commonly used by airlines, hotels during holiday seasons, and ride-sharing services like Uber during busy hours.

According to Ticketmaster, for concert tickets, it is the artists or promoters who decide the face value of tickets and the number available. They can opt for dynamic pricing, which Ticketmaster implements upon receiving their approval. The agency representing Oasis did not immediately comment on the issue.

Although dynamic pricing feels unfair to consumers, it is legal as long as companies adhere to laws and regulations related to pricing transparency, consumer protection, and fair competition.

Ticketmaster introduced dynamic pricing in 2022 to combat ticket touts—people who acquire multiple tickets to resell them at a profit. In the UK, Viagogo and StubHub are the main secondary ticketing platforms. Ticketmaster shut down its resale sites, GetMeIn and Seatwave, in 2018 following persistent criticism of ticket reselling by touts.

Harry Styles, Coldplay, and Blackpink have used dynamic pricing for their UK tours, according to the BBC. Bruce Springsteen also gave Live Nation the green light to implement dynamic pricing for his tour dates last year. Conversely, Taylor Swift chose not to use dynamic pricing for her “The Eras Tour.”

In response to the Oasis ticket sale, the British government announced plans to investigate how prices for concert tickets on official websites increase during periods of high demand. This investigation will form part of a broader review of ticket sales and consumer protection issues.

Dublin MEP Regina Doherty has called for an investigation into Ticketmaster by Ireland’s Competition and Consumer Commission following the unexpected price increases for Oasis tickets.

For years, fans and politicians have urged a re-examination of Live Nation’s acquisition of Ticketmaster in 2010. This call intensified last year when Ticketmaster botched ticket sales for Taylor Swift’s first concert tour in years, resulting in hours-long online queues and prohibitively high prices.

The Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster in April, accusing them of monopolizing markets across the live concert industry. The European Commission has also been monitoring dynamic pricing, stressing that EU law prohibits dominant companies from imposing excessively high prices.

($1 = 0.7612 pounds)

Source: Reuters, BBC