AGCM

PRESS RELEASE

CONCERT TICKETS PRE-SALE, ANTITRUST AUTHORITY INVESTIGATION ON TICKETONE AND ON FOUR OPERATORS IN THE SECONDARY MARKET

The Antitrust Authority investigates the phenomenon, reported by many consumers as well as the National Union of Consumers and Altroconsumo Foundation, relating to the impossibility to buy even at the opening of sales, tickets for major events on the website of Ticketone S.p.a., which has exclusive rights to the online channel of the main events and sales tickets at the prices set by the organisers on behalf of the artist. The tickets are then available, even some minutes after the opening of sales, on other websites (secondary market), at prices that are often higher than those on the primary market. This happened, even recently, during the sale of tickets for the Coldplay concert in Italy and, in the past, for the concerts of One Direction, Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bruce Springsteen, Renato Zero, Adele and David Gilmour.

The Authority has therefore initiated preliminary proceedings against Ticketone SpA and the four main operators of the secondary market in Italy, in order to verify possible violations of the Consumer Code.

The investigation against Ticketone is directed, first, to ascertain if the trader has provided appropriate IT measures, contractual provisions and terms of sale, and that he has exercised proper control to ensure the effective availability of tickets to consumers and to avoid the possibility that some individuals, through the use of specific software, proceed to the bulk and almost instantaneous purchase of all the tickets on the online channel.

The investigations started against the secondary market traders are meant to verify the misleading nature of the information relating to the conditions of sale on the websites, which may make unclear the nature and the characteristics of the brokerage service carried out, the type and the selling price of the tickets offered, as well as the rights and guarantees given to the consumer even in the case of cancellation of events.

The Authority, in collaboration with the Special Antitrust Unit of the Guardia di Finanza, has carried out inspections at the premises of Ticketone S.p.a. and a company that, although not part of the Authority’s proceedings, may have useful information for the investigation at hand.

Rome, 18 October 2016