By Matt Underwood UK to ban the resale of tickets for profit to protect fans, and it sounds like a much-needed move. I mean, who hasn’t been frustrated by exorbitant ticket prices and the feeling that you’re just getting ripped off? The idea of actually being able to attend a show without having to take out a second mortgage is certainly appealing. It’s a first step, hopefully, to curb the rampant profiteering that has plagued the entertainment industry for far too long.
The core of this seems to be about the nature of the ticket itself. Is it something you truly own, or more like a license granting you temporary access? The UK appears to be leaning towards the latter. The fact that the ticket is a revocable license makes a lot of sense, legally speaking, and allows the government to step in to control the reselling. This is already how tickets are commonly sold in the UK, as stated in the ticketing FAQs. This means you can still sell your ticket on the original platform if you need to, but you won’t be able to make a profit. You’ll just get your money back, which is a fair compromise.
Of course, the concern of potential scammers using third-party payment platforms like PayPal or Venmo to take advantage of people will always exist. They might try to take the money and run, or offer tickets that don’t exist, but that’s a risk inherent in any transaction. However, with official platforms controlling resales, it will be much easier to prevent significant amounts of casual usage of that black market and the removal of services that facilitate it. The point is that the system should aim to make it harder for the bad actors to profit, rather than making the experience of buying a ticket a complete lottery.
The fact that the government is also considering capping the fees charged by the platforms themselves is a bonus. It’s a good thing that the platform will not be allowed to continue charging a large fee. It’s just adding insult to injury when you’re already paying inflated prices. This could make a real difference in terms of affordability. Ultimately, the goal is to get tickets into the hands of people who actually want to attend the event, rather than speculators looking to make a quick buck.
This is not to say that there won’t be challenges. Black markets and scammers will likely try to find loopholes. Some people are already speculating that this will create a whole new level of the same problems. But the point is to make it harder, not to eliminate the problems entirely. It is also good to note that it’s just one step in the right direction. It’s a step away from protecting profits and one more step toward protecting the fans.
This policy hopefully will have a positive impact. It will be interesting to see how it plays out in practice and how the platforms will adjust. It will be easier to manage the tickets on official platforms since they can make them non-transferable outside of their own official reselling. So if anyone gets caught in that kind of scam, they’re probably out of luck, but at least the official channels will be safe. It’s hard to predict how effective this will be, but it’s a necessary attempt to bring some fairness back to the ticket-buying process.
This change highlights a broader discussion about how the government handles other areas such as water supplies, railways, energy supplies, the cost of housing, and healthcare. However, the ticket regulations are a separate issue, and while some are upset that the government is focused on tickets and not other major issues, this is a clear indication that UK politicians are actually listening to their constituents and making it harder for corporations.