Ticketmaster is going to partially refund Olivia Dean fans who bought tickets to her shows above face value, after the U.K. artist slammed the resale market for its “exploitative” nature.
On Thursday, the ticketing platform said it immediately activated a Face Value Exchange (FVE) for “The Art of Loving Live” tour, as a way of ensuring any upcoming resales on its site are capped at the original paid price, without any added fees.
This is something Ticketmaster says it first introduced in 2019, and continues to offer to artists so resale prices can be capped before tickets are up for sale.
The Grammy-nominated singer lambasted Ticketmaster and Live Nation in an Instagram story last week, saying they provide a “disgusting service.” According to Variety, the British singer said it is “vile” to allow tickets to be upsold, adding that live music should be affordable to fans.
“We share Olivia Dean’s desire to keep live music accessible and ensure fans have the best access to affordable tickets,” Michael Rapino, Live Nation Entertainment’s CEO, said in a news release.
“While we can’t require other marketplaces to honor artists’ resale preferences, we echo Olivia’s call to ‘Do Better’ and have taken steps to lead by example.”
In an email to her fans subscribed to her mailing list, Dean confirmed Ticketmaster and AXS have agreed to refund the difference for any resale tickets purchased above face value.
“Every artist and their team should be granted the option to cap resale at face value ahead of on sale, to keep the live music space accessible for all,” Dean wrote.
“The secondary ticket market is an exploitative and unregulated space, and we as an industry have a responsibility to protect people and our community.”
Dean has back-to-back sold-out performances at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena this coming summer, on Aug. 4 and 5. Many fans want to watch the “Man I Need” singer’s upcoming tour, as Ticketmaster pointed to the addition of three shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden to meet the high demand.
While many snagged tickets to Dean’s tour, the ticketing platform said less than 20 per cent of tickets were put up on the resale market.
Calls for changes to be made for the ticket resale market have long gone unanswered in Ontario, as the Doug Ford government stripped away a law that capped prices at 50 per cent above face value in 2019.
That said, when the Toronto Blue Jays made it to the World Series, the premier changed his tune, calling scalpers out for “gouging” fans as some tickets for Game 7 were listed for as much as $16,000 on the resale market.
“They’re gouging the people,” Ford said then. “When you have one player in the market that controls the tickets, that’s not right for the people. So, we’re actually right now considering legislation.”
Ticketmaster says it does not receive money for the price markups, adding it is “stepping in to absorb this refund cost for fans.” By Dec. 10, refunds will be processed, though Ticketmaster says it could take a few more days depending on who fans bank with.
With files from CP24’s Joshua Freeman
