British music stars urge Starmer to tackle ‘pernicious’ ticket tout websites

Dozens of prominent British musicians, including Thom Yorke, Dua Lipa, and Chris Martin, have called on Labour leader Keir Starmer to address the issue of "pernicious" ticket touting websites. In an open letter, these artists, who have collectively sold over half a billion albums, urged Starmer to honor his party's pledge to cap resale ticket prices. They argue that secondary ticketing platforms like Viagogo and StubHub exploit fans by selling tickets at vastly inflated prices, often thousands of pounds above face value, preventing genuine enthusiasts from attending concerts, theatre, and sporting events. The artists highlighted practices such as the use of bots and speculative selling, where touts list tickets they don't possess at exorbitant markups, leading to significant profits for resellers while fans face exorbitant costs or are unable to attend. Consumer group Which? provided examples of extreme price gouging, with tickets for major artists like Oasis listed for thousands of pounds and a ticket for the All Points East festival appearing for over £100,000. Some touts are accused of advertising tickets that haven't even been released by the original seller at inflated prices. Secondary ticketing companies like Viagogo and StubHub have countered these claims, stating that capping resale prices would lead to increased fraud as fans resort to unregulated channels. They also assert their compliance with UK regulations and deny permitting bots. However, the artists, supported by industry organizations, believe that capping prices would actually make it easier for f... download the app to read more