Hundreds file complaints over advertising of Oasis tickets after surge pricing

After some fans were left shocked by standard tickets more than doubling from £148 to £355 on Ticketmaster due to demand, the Culture Secretary pledged to look into the use of surge pricing in its forthcoming Government review of the secondary gig sales market.

Many fans also missed out on the reunion tour tickets as they battled with website issues, and being mislabelled as bots, before Oasis announced all 17 shows in the UK and Dublin had sold out.

Other international dates are still to be announced, but no more UK shows will be added to their tour, the PA news agency understands.

Following the ticket furore, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has received 450 complaints about Ticketmaster adverts for the Oasis gigs.

A spokesperson for the UK’s regulator of advertising said the complainants argue that the adverts made “misleading claims about availability and pricing”.

They added: “We’re carefully assessing these complaints and, as such, can’t comment any further at this time.

“To emphasise, we are not currently investigating these ads.”

Ticketmaster said it does not set prices and its website says this is down to the “event organiser” who “has priced these tickets according to their market value”.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy released a statement on Sunday calling the inflated selling of Oasis tickets “incredibly depressing”.

“After the incredible news of Oasis’ return, it’s depressing to see vastly inflated prices excluding ordinary fans from having a chance of enjoying their favourite band live”, she said.

“This Government is committed to putting fans back at the heart of music. So we will include issues around the transparency and use of dynamic pricing, including the technology around queuing systems which incentivise it, in our forthcoming consultation on consumer protections for ticket resales.

“Working with artists, industry and fans we can create a fairer system that ends the scourge of touts, rip-off resales and ensures tickets at fair prices.”

House of Commons leader and Lord President of the Council Lucy Powell was among those hit by dynamic pricing on Saturday, and eventually forked out more than double the original quoted cost of a ticket for an Oasis show.

Ms Powell said she ended up buying two tickets for £350 each for Heaton Park in July, which were originally quoted at £148.50, not including a booking fee of £2.75.

The Manchester Central MP told BBC Radio 5 Live that she does not “particularly like” surge pricing, before adding: “It is the market and how it operates.”

“You’ve absolutely got to be transparent about that so that when people arrive after hours of waiting, they understand that the ticket is going to cost more,” she said.

It is believed the ticket prices for Oasis gigs were set by promoters.

The band’s promoters, Manchester-based SJM Concerts, Irish MCD and Scottish DF Concerts & Events have all been approached for comment.

Brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher confirmed their reunion on Tuesday following the end of their more than a decade long acrimonious split.

There has also been concern about the non-official sellers Viagogo, who are listing resale tickets for thousands of pounds.

The secondary seller has defended the practice saying fans sell the tickets, and its global managing director added: “Resale is legal in the UK and fans are always protected by our guarantee that they will receive their tickets in time for the event or their money back.”

Oasis have told followers that Ticketmaster and Twickets should only be used for resales, and put up for prices at “face value”, otherwise they will be “cancelled by the promoters”.