ARTISTS are outraged to find tickets to their shows on sale at dramatically inflated prices.
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“It’s extortion,” The Bushwackers lagerphone player Dobe Newton said after he discovered tickets to their show were available at a resale website called Viagogo for almost triple the price.
“It’s been a worldwide scandal for the last 18 months or something but it hasn’t been so obvious in Australia and certainly hasn’t affected Tamworth before.”
The band charges $28 for tickets, at Viagogo they’re selling for more than $80.
And, they’re not the only ones playing at The Longyard that have been targeted by the resale website.
Tickets to country music bluegrass band The Pigs’ show are for sale online at $141, while direct from Oztix they are just $28.
Mr Newton is calling the resale a “fraud” and believes the issue needs to be dealt with by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission [ACCC].
None of the additional money made with the Viagogo country music ticket sales goes back to the artists.
“You go to this mob and you’re paying an extra 50 bucks, for what? The tickets aren’t sold out,” Mr Newton said.
In NSW, new laws apply to ticketed events sold from June 1 last year.
The laws crack down on ticket scalping, re-sale of any ticket at a price more than 10 percent of the original cost is illegal.
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Ads are required to include the original cost of the ticket, a re-sale asking price below the mandated cap, and the seat details including the bay, seat, or row number.
Maximum penalties are $11,000 for an individual, and $22,000 for an organisation.
Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean said these reforms address the concerns of consumers who have reported problems with ticket scalpers to NSW Fair Trading.
“Fair Trading received more than 1000 complaints and enquiries about entertainment and ticketing issues in 2016 to 17, with Viagogo named on the Complaints Register every month for the last year,” Mr Kean said.
“These laws create a level playing field so genuine fans can buy tickets.”
Madeline Link
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
