Anti-corruption watchdog the Competition and Markets Authority has launched an investigation into sales of tickets for next year's reunion concerts by rock band Oasis.
Hundreds of thousands of tickets for outdoor shows in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Dublin went on sale on Saturday last week via global giant Ticketmaster. All reportedly sold out by the end of the day, with many fans left disappointed after hours of queuing online.
Some fans reported being asked to pay hundreds of pounds more than the originally-advertised price of tickets to see battling brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher reunite on stage to play Oasis songs together for the first time in 16 years. Would-be concert-goers said that by the time they progressed to the front of the queue prices had risen dramatically because of Ticketmaster's use of "dynamic pricing" to respond to demand.
Basic standing tickets for venues such as Wembley Stadium in London and Heaton Park in Manchester were priced at around £150 each, with the inclusion of booking fees. But the use of dynamic pricing – which is common in the airline industry and a feature of taxi-ordering platform Uber – saw some ticket-buyers asked to part with £350 for a chance to see the band.
Yesterday the CMA said it will probe whether Ticketmaster's sale of Oasis tickets may have breached consumer protection law.
It said the investigation would include whether Ticketmaster used "unfair commercial practices" prohibited under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, and examine if ticket-buyers had been given "clear and timely information" on how prices could change.
The CMA said it would also look at whether customers had been effectively pressurised to buy tickets at higher prices than expected by being given a short period of time to make a decision.
CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said the investigation had been launched because fans needed to be treated fairly when they bought tickets.
"It’s clear that many people felt they had a bad experience and were surprised by the price of their tickets at check-out," she said.
"We want to hear from fans who went through the process and may have encountered issues so that we can investigate whether existing consumer protection law has been breached."
The CMA said that in addition to inviting fans to submit details of their experience of attempting to buy Oasis tickets, investigators would also gather evidence from the band's management, Ticketmaster, event organisers and other sources.
It said dynamic pricing was "not automatically unlawful" and there should be no assumption that Ticketmaster had broken consumer-protection law.
The CMA said its investigation would examine how dynamic pricing had been used in the Oasis ticket sale, and the information ticket-buyers were given regarding the price they would pay as they went through the process.
A Ticketmaster spokesperson said: "We are committed to cooperating with the CMA and look forward to sharing more facts about the ticket sale with them."
In a statement issued to PA Media earlier this week, Oasis stressed that decisions on ticketing and prices were left "entirely to their promoters and management".
It added that the band "at no time had any awareness that dynamic pricing was going to be used" in the sale of tickets for the reunion tour's initial dates.
The CMA has set up a dedicated portal for Oasis fans to share their experiences. It is accepting evidence until 19 September.