NL to tackle ‘billon-dollar’ resale industry

The Dutch government says it will devise a strategy this autumn to tackle the resale of tickets for extortionate prices.

The state secretary for culture and media Gunay Uslu called resale a “persistent problem” and wants to better protect consumers.

It comes after reports that Lowlands tickets were being resold for more than €100 over the original price, prompting politicians to wade in.

The 60,000 tickets for the Mojo-promoted festival cost €300 euros each and sold out within 15 minutes.

Ticketholders are only allowed to resell tickets through Ticketmaster, with a maximum of 20% on top of the purchased price.

She said she expects to come up with a plan in the autumn after researching how other countries deal with this problem

However, Ticketmaster in the Netherlands reportedly charges over €40 euros in service costs per transaction, hiking the price of a Lowlands ticket up to over €400.

The Socialist Party of the Netherlands has been calling on the government to crack down on the ‘billion-dollar’ resale industry for years, to no avail.

However, the party submitted a motion last year that was widely supported in the House of Representatives, subsequently drawing the attention of Uslu.

She said she expects to come up with a plan in the autumn after researching how other countries deal with this problem.

Ticketing fees have been thrust under the microscope of late after The Cure persuaded Ticketmaster to offer partial refunds for “unduly high” ticketing fees charged in the Verified Fan sale for the band’s upcoming North American tour.

Various markets are already making moves to eliminate “excessive” ticketing fees for concerts and other events, with the US recently introducing a “Junk Fee Prevention Act”.

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