Essential Guide to New Ticketing Laws

Overview of the New Ticket Resale Rules

When popular artists like Taylor Swift or Oasis announce a tour, it creates a wave of excitement among fans. However, this excitement is often quickly overshadowed by frustration when tickets are resold at exorbitant prices. To address this issue, the government has proposed new rules that aim to make it illegal to resell tickets for live events above their original cost.

These measures are intended to combat "industrial-scale ticket touting" and represent one of the most significant changes to ticket buying in the online age. Here's what you need to know about these plans.

What Are the New Rules?

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has announced several key points:

• Ticket resale above face value will be illegal. Tickets can only be sold for their face value plus unavoidable fees, such as service charges.
• Service charges added by resale platforms will be capped to prevent the new price limit from being undermined.
• Resale platforms will have a legal duty to monitor and enforce compliance with the new price cap.
• Individuals will be banned from reselling more tickets than they were entitled to buy in the initial ticket sale. For example, if consumers were limited to purchasing four tickets each, only four can be resold.

The implementation timeline is still uncertain, as the plans need to go through the House of Commons. The government said it would introduce primary legislation "when Parliamentary time allows." These rules will apply not only to concerts but also to sports, theatre, comedy, and other forms of live entertainment.

Why Are the Rules Being Introduced?

Ticket touting has become increasingly sophisticated in recent years, according to the DCMS. Touts use automated bots to buy large numbers of tickets for popular events, which are then resold on secondary websites at inflated prices. This practice has caused "misery for millions of fans and damaged the live events industry."

The new laws aim to end this practice and improve access and affordability for genuine fans. The rules will apply to any platform reselling tickets to UK fans, including social media platforms. Fans offering tickets on platforms such as X or Facebook Marketplace will be legally obliged to adhere to the rules. Businesses that break the regulations could face financial penalties of up to 10% of global turnover from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

How Much Will Fans Save?

The amount of money fans will save varies depending on the show and the ticket. Some fans might save just a few pounds, while others buying tickets for the most popular events could save hundreds or even thousands. The government estimates that resale tickets will be £37 cheaper on average (including fees), collectively saving fans about £112m per year.

The government’s analysis suggests that about 900,000 more tickets will be bought directly from primary sellers each year due to these measures. According to the CMA, typical mark-ups on secondary market tickets exceed 50%, and investigations by Trading Standards have uncovered evidence of tickets being resold for up to six times their original cost.

Concerns About the New Rules

Some in the ticketing industry argue that these rules may push ticket reselling to less regulated corners of the internet. Most regulated platforms guarantee the authenticity of tickets, meaning fans get their money back if they receive fake tickets. If such platforms are shut down, fans may be more exposed to fraudulent transactions.

Old-school physical ticket touting could also make a comeback, where touts stand outside venues on the night of concerts, buying and selling physical tickets for cash.

Responses from Ticketing Companies

A spokesman for Viagogo, one of the main secondary ticket sites, said: "We acknowledge the government's announcement today, which is part of a long, multi-year process, not a final outcome." Viagogo argues that the correct solution is "open distribution," which connects primary platforms such as Ticketmaster with resale platforms like Viagogo to verify tickets.

"This allows the sharing of critical information to identify illegal bot activity and eliminate fraud," Viagogo said. "Opening the market to greater competition also helps drive prices down, benefiting fans."

Twickets, a resale platform supported by musicians like Ed Sheeran, already only allows fans to sell tickets at no more than face value.

Dynamic Pricing and Its Impact

Another issue that has sparked controversy is the use of dynamic pricing, where ticket prices fluctuate based on demand. This hit the headlines when Oasis's reunion tour went on sale, with many fans paying hundreds of pounds more than expected.

The CMA said in September it had not found evidence that prices for Oasis tickets were actually changed in real time due to high demand, but the backlash led the authority to secure a commitment from Ticketmaster to improve pricing information. This includes giving fans 24 hours' notice of tiered pricing, providing clearer price information during online queues, and ending misleading ticket labeling.

As things stand, dynamic pricing will still be allowed, but companies must be more transparent with fans.

Can I Still Resell My Ticket?

Under the proposals, consumers will still be allowed to resell their tickets if they want to, for example, if they can no longer attend an event. However, individuals will only be able to legally resell their ticket for its original cost (or less), plus any service fees.