Police Scotland issue warning over ticket fraud
Police Scotland are warning the public to be alert to online ticket fraud following hundreds of reports over the past nine months.
Officers say there were 313 reported incidents of fraud across Scotland between January and September involving the online sale of tickets for major events – equating to 6% of all cyber fraud incidents – with 60% relating to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Edinburgh, alongside other concerts such as Oasis and TRNSMT, as well as sporting events.
The majority take place on social media and online marketplace platforms by individuals and groups looking to exploit members of the public for financial gain.
“We’ve noticed a trend in this type of crime reported around major events happening in Scotland,” says Insp Alasdair Penny of cybercrime harm prevention. “The figures represent a significant proportion of cybercrime, but we believe these types of incidents are underreported and the true figure will be much higher.
“Reports relating to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour have made up the majority and we’re aware there are a number of highly anticipated events next year, including the Oasis tour and TRNSMT.”
Swift performed three sold out nights at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium in June, while Oasis are set to follow suit next August.
“We have publicly raised the threat of cyber criminality and the increase in online offending and have put plans in place to address it,” says Penny. “The chief constable unveiled a new vision for Police Scotland, including a commitment to establish a new cyber command and increase our capabilities to tackle online fraud.
“Our message is: be vigilant. If a price or offer seems too good to be true, it probably is”
“We want to make sure the public is aware of potential fraudulent sales and provide advice around how to spot it. Our message is: be vigilant. If a price or offer seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
According to the figures, women between the ages of 18 and 24 are most at risk from this type of fraud. Police have issued advice on what to look out for when buying tickets.
“Before purchasing, carefully review the ticket details for authenticity,” adds Penny. “Check for accurate event information, including the date, time, and venue. Pay attention to the seating section or assigned seats, which can indicate fraudulent tickets.
“Buy from legitimate sources, check bank details provided and use secure payment methods. Credit cards and reputable online payment platforms offer additional protection against fraudulent transactions. Avoid paying with cash, wire transfers, or unsecured payment methods.
“Please report any fraudulent activity to police. We will fully investigate and we work alongside partners to raise awareness and tackle those involved in such offences.”
UK Swifties were estimated to have lost over £1 million (€1.2m) in a wave of online scams since tickets went on sale for the European leg of The Eras Tour in July 2023, according to previous analysis by Lloyds Bank.
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Live Nation’s Concert Week expands to 20 new countries
Live Nation is launching its fan-favourite Concert Week deal in several new markets, including Australia, Asia, Europe, the UK and the Middle East, in honour of 10 years of the annual promotion.
The lauded initiative offers fans cut-rate tickets for top tours across a variety of genres, like pop/rock, hip-hop, and comedy, and includes gigs from club level to arenas to festivals. The annual event will expand to 20 additional countries this year, a substantial jump from the US and Canada where the deal kicks off the summer concert season.
Launching next week, the promotion’s dates and deals depend on host countries and will run as inventory allows. Across the board, tickets as low as $25/£25/€25 are on offer, with daily giveaways and prizes to be won in certain territories.
In North America, fans can snap up $25 tickets from 8-14 May for over 5,000 shows from over 900 artists, including Janet Jackson, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Peso Pluma, Alanis Morissette, Cage The Elephant and 21 Savage. The price tag includes fees (apart from local taxes), with the all-in pricing coming just one week after over 250 artists signalled support for the Fans First Act.
The US bill aims to increase transparency in ticket sales and would require sellers and resellers to break down ticket costs, along with other primary and secondary sale reforms. Live Nation endorsed the bill alongside the National Independent Venue Associaton (NIVA), Recording Academy, Eventbrite, and others.
In the UK, over 40,000 tickets will be available for £25, for gigs from the likes of Doja Cat, Charli XCX, Shania Twain, McFly, and IDLES, from 6-12 May.
Additional countries benefiting are Australia, New Zealand, China, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand
More than 4,000 tickets are on discount in France from 8-14 May. Live Nation España is offering giveaways for The Weeknd’s Madrid and Barcelona showings, signed Coldplay posters, and two tickets for each of Louis Tomlinson’s Bilbao, Barcelona, and Madrid performances.
From 6-12 May in Denmark, fans can grab 300 KR (€25) tickets for J Balvin, girl in red, Journey, and more, and daily contests will be held in Belgium from 8-14 May for giveaways to gigs like James Blake and Louis Tomlinson.
Live Nation GSA is offering two tiers of discounts — €25 passes are available for Wallows’ Cologne and Berlin gigs and Lil Yachty’s Vienna performance, along with €40 ones for Usher’s Berlin show, and Rod Stewart’s outings in Stuttgart, Zurich, and Mönchengladbach.
Concert Week will also land in the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Sweden, with details to be announced.
In the UAE, Live Nation is giving away tickets to 13 different music and comedy shows — including Scorpions’ Abu Dhabi gig, the second edition of Wireless Festival in Abu Dhabi, and Lea Salonga’s Coca-Cola Arena show in Dubai — from 8-14 May.
Additional countries benefiting are Australia, New Zealand, China, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand, with deals to be announced across May.
In addition to popular tours from Glass Animals, Thirty Seconds to Mars, and Melanie Martinez, the deal includes festivals for the second year. While Live Nation added $99 festival tickets to its offerings last year — which included one-day passes to New York’s Governor’s Ball and Miami’s Afro Nation — fewer festivals are included in this year’s promotion.
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Paléo organisers warn of increase in ticket scams
Organisers of Switzerland’s Paléo have warned of a “strong increase” in ticket scams for this year’s festival.
All 200,000 passes for the 2024 event, which takes place in Nyon from 23-28 July, sold out in just 21 minutes last month, and fans are being urged to only buy resale tickets through the festival’s official ticket exchange.
Paléo Festival is a partner of Swiss consumer protection watchdog FRC (Romande Consumer Rights Federation), which works against ticket touting.
“We are currently observing a strong increase in the number of scams involving online ticket purchases on secondary markets,” says a message to posted to fans online. “We recommend that you only buy your tickets on the official platforms. The festival is currently sold out. The only official resale platform is the ticket market.”
“Any purchase made outside these outlets is not considered authorised and secure, and the festival will unfortunately not be able to intervene in the event of a problem”
In addition to the Paléo ticket exchange, 1,500 daily tickets will be made available from 9am on each day of this year’s festival.
“Any purchase made outside these outlets is not considered authorised and secure, and the festival will unfortunately not be able to intervene in the event of a problem,” adds the post.
Launched in 1976, the event accommodates more than 35,000 fans daily. Artists at Paléo’s 2024 edition will include Sam Smith, Burna Boy, Booba, Mika, Sean Paul, Major Lazer Soundsystem, Gazo & Tiakola, PLK, Nile Rodgers & Chic, Patti Smith, The Blaze, Paul Kalkbrenner, Aurora and Royal Blood.
“We knew from our December pre-sale that demand was very strong,” booker Dany Hassenstein told IQ earlier this year. “All our digital data were showing this same evolution too. I really believe that, together with the very rich lineup, it is our standards and values that makes this success. We have this tremendous level of confidence and loyalty from our guests, and we are doing everything to never put that trust at risk.”
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UK Swifties ‘lose £1m’ to Eras Tour ticket scams
UK Taylor Swift fans are estimated to have lost over £1 million (€1.2m) in a wave of online scams since tickets went on sale for the European leg of The Eras Tour last July, according to fresh data.
Analysis by Lloyds Bank of scam reports made by its own customers found a surge in fraud cases from those buying tickets for Swift’s upcoming UK stadium dates.
More than 600 customers have come forward to report being scammed – significantly more than for any other music artist. The average amount lost by each victim was £332, although in some cases it was more than £1,000.
As the figures are based solely on Lloyds’ own customer data, it estimates that across the UK there are likely to have been at least 3,000 victims since tickets went on sale, with over £1m being lost to fraudsters so far.
“For her legion of dedicated Swifties, the excitement is building ahead of Taylor’s Eras Tour finally touching down in the UK this summer,” says Liz Ziegler, fraud prevention director at Lloyds Bank. “However, cruel fraudsters have wasted no time in targeting her most loyal fans as they rush to pick up tickets for her must-see concerts.”
“Buying directly from reputable, authorised platforms is the only way to guarantee you’re paying for a genuine ticket”
The record-shattering Eras Tour lands in the UK and Ireland in June with special guests Paramore for stops at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium (7-9 June), Liverpool’s Anfield Stadium (13-15 June), Principality Stadium in Cardiff (18 June), London’s Wembley Stadium (21-23 June & 15-20 August) and Aviva Stadium, Dublin (23-30 June).
Lloyds says that more than 90% of reported cases start with fake adverts or posts on Facebook, where dozens of unofficial groups have been set up specifically for people looking to buy and sell tickets for Swift’s concerts. Likewise, Facebook Marketplace has various listings for tickets at venues all over the country.
“It’s easy to let our emotions get the better of us when we find out our favourite artist is going to be performing live, but it’s important not to let those feelings cloud our judgement when trying to get hold of tickets,” adds Ziegler.
“Buying directly from reputable, authorised platforms is the only way to guarantee you’re paying for a genuine ticket. Even then, always pay by debit or credit card for the greatest protection. If you’re being asked to pay by bank transfer, particularly from a seller you’ve found on social media, that should immediately set alarm bells ringing.”
UK Swifties are not alone in being targeted by con artists around the tour. Australian Taylor Swift fans reportedly lost in excess of A$260,000 (€157,000) in a fake ticket scam for the singer’s February concerts in the country, while Inside Retail reports that Singapore-based recommerce platform Carousell suspended the sale of tickets in all of its six markets to prevent scams ahead of Swift’s Singapore dates in March.
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‘Very limited’ number of tickets in Glasto resale
Only a “very limited” number of tickets will be available in Glastonbury Festival’s upcoming 2024 resale, organisers have announced.
The initial sale sold out in just under an hour last November, as “demand greatly exceeded supply” for the more than 140,000 public tickets. Festival ticket and coach packages were also snapped up in 25 minutes.
General sale tickets cost £355, plus a £5 booking fee, with successful applicants required to pay a deposit of £75 per person upfront, with the remaining balance due in the first week of April.
Tickets for which the balance was not paid will be made available in the resale from 6pm BST on Thursday 18 April for ticket & coach travel options, and 9am on Sunday 21 April for general admission tickets.
“As in previous years, the exact number of tickets in the resale will not be announced. But it is a very limited amount,” says the UK festival. “Demand is expected to significantly outweigh the number of tickets available.”
Any cancelled accommodation options, covering Worthy View, Sticklinch and campervan/caravan passes, will be made available at 11am on 21 April.
Coldplay, Dua Lipa and SZA will headline Glastonbury 2024
Coldplay, Dua Lipa and SZA will headline this year’s event, which will take place at Worthy Farm, Somerset, from 26-30 June. The bill will also include the likes of LCD Soundsystem, PJ Harvey, Little Simz, Burna Boy, Janelle Monáe, Cyndi Lauper, Michael Kiwanuka and Seventeen, while Shania Twain will occupy the coveted Sunday teatime “legend slot”.
A recently published report measuring the economic impact of Glastonbury Festival revealed that last year’s event cost £62m to stage. The Economic Impact Summary 2023 was commissioned by organisers of the UK festival and carried out by research specialist Fourth Street.
The report, which was based on a survey of 643 festival-goers, plus an online survey of 354 staff and 148 volunteers – along with 30 telephone interviews with local businesses – found Glastonbury to have a “significant positive economic impact”, both nationally and locally, generating around £168m of income for UK businesses including £32m for Somerset-based businesses.
Artists such as Elton John, Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses, Lana Del Rey, WizKid, Lizzo, Blondie and Cat Stevens starred at the 2023 event.
Festival-goers were estimated to have spent £1.6m in the wider Somerset community, 50% of which was spent in local shops and supermarkets. Around 900 attendees stayed in local hotels and B&Bs during the event, contributing around £450,000, with 4,000 staying in privately-run offsite campsites, spending in the region of £6.5m.
Glastonbury made payments in excess of £3.7m to a range of charitable causes and campaigns in 2023.
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German culture pass extended – but funding halved
Germany’s youth culture pass is to be extended for a second year, but funding for the scheme is being halved.
Since June 2023, teenagers living in the country have been able to access the federal government scheme, which has provided them with €200 to spend on event tickets, books and audio media when they turn 18 in an effort to strengthen cultural participation.
The scheme generated more than €3.2 million in revenue in its first two months, with the majority of funds used to buy books (49%), followed by cinema tickets (36%) and concert and theatre tickets (14%). Of the first 136,000 teenagers who had activated their vouchers, 27,417 used them on live music and the theatre.
However, due to funding cuts prompted by Germany’s “budget crisis“, the value of the vouchers for citizens born in 2006 will be worth only €100 this year.
“It’s good news that the KulturPass will continue to exist in 2024 despite the tight budget situation,” Peter Kraus vom Cleff, GM & CEO of Germany’s publishers and booksellers association, tells Publishing Perspectives. “At the same time, we’re disappointed that financial resources have been significantly reduced.”
“The culture pass is a valuable instrument for strengthening the cultural participation of young people, especially if they have not previously been given access to culture”
Germany’s Music Industry Forum, which comprises the BDKV, venue body LiveKomm, music publishers’ organisation DMV, Association of Independent Music Companies (VUT), Society of Music Merchants (SOMM) and recording industry body BVMI, called for an extension to the culture pass last October after more than half a million young people downloaded the app in its first four months.
“The culture pass is a valuable instrument for strengthening the cultural participation of young people, especially if they have not previously been given access to culture,” said a statement from the group. “The culture pass not only provides a low-threshold entry and a wide range of offerings, but also supports social interaction and thus social cohesion. Cultural participation plays an important role in actively committing to our pluralistic society and its democratic values.
“Bookstores, cinemas, concert organisers, theatres, orchestras, museums, record stores and music retailers have been extremely committed to supporting the project right from the start.”
Similar initiatives have also been rolled out in Spain, France and Italy with the aim of generating new consumption habits, post-pandemic.
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Live music ticket sales up 48% in Spain
Ticket sales for live music events in Spain have risen by almost 50% over the past year, according to a new study.
According to the data from the IV Ticketmaster Observatory, reported by APMusicales (APM), ticket sales are up 48% on the pandemic hit 2021/22 figures, with the average expenditure per ticket increasing 37% to €80 compared to €58 last year.
The study was presented this week by Ticketmaster Spain MD Jordi Anglès, following analysis of the transactions made on the platform between 1 August 2022 and 31 July 2023. It also highlighted a significant increase in ticket purchases among 18 to 24-year-olds, rocketing 45% on the previous 12 months.
The average ticket-buyer was aged between 35-44, with Andalusia accounting for 19% of consumers, followed by Madrid (17%) and Catalonia (16%). The most popular genres were pop (30%), hip-hop (15%), rock (13%) and Latin (9%).
Music tourism has also rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, representing 10% of concert-goers in Spain, led by France and the UK (both 16%), the Czech Republic (11%), United States (10%) and Italy 9%. Tourists spend an average of €107 each time they buy tickets – 28% more than the Spanish public.
“Tourists demand tickets with greater added value such as VIP tickets”
“Tourists demand tickets with greater added value such as VIP tickets,” says Anglès. “Since they make the effort to travel, they are willing to invest more money to enjoy the experience.”
The main deterrents to fans buying tickets were listed as price (36%), lack of interest in the event (23%), lack of time (21%) and the concert being sold out (20%).
Back in March, APM (Association of Musical Promoters) revealed that revenue from ticket sales reached record levels in 2022. The organisation reported that box office takings of more than €459 million leapt 191.33% on 2021, a year restricted by the pandemic, but were also up 20% on the previous best, set in the last pre-Covid year of 2019.
Speaking in the Live Music Yearbook 2023, APM president Albert Salmeron said the figures symbolised “the recovery of a society”.
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Ticketmaster to launch upsell option for MVT
Ticketmaster is launching a charity upsell option for the UK’s Music Venue Trust (MVT) to coincide with its sponsorship of this month’s Venues Day.
The upsell, which will launch on Venues Day (17 October) and run for an entire month, means that anyone purchasing a ticket on Ticketmaster will be given the option to make a donation directly to MVT.
The initiative will run annually, with Ticketmaster pledging to match all donations received.
“This upsell provides a practical method for fans to support grassroots music venues, and we are incredibly grateful to the Ticketmaster team for putting it in place,” MVT CEO Mark Davyd tells IQ. “Ticketmaster matching all fan donations is a powerful message for the whole industry about the support our sector needs and the will of the music community to provide it.”
The move follows Ticketmaster’s booking fee rebate launched in 2021, where venues receive a 50% rebate on all booking fees. The ticketing company has been headline sponsor of Venues Day since 2016.
“Ticketmaster has been a long-term and committed partner of MVT, and their core support has been vital in developing us as the authentic voice of grassroots venues, artists and fans,” says Davyd.
The music charity’s annual Venues Day event will take place at The Fireworks Factory in London next Tuesday 17 October. Hundreds of delegates from across the UK’s grassroots music venue (GMV) sector, representing venues throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, have already booked their places at the event.
“We need a radical intervention by everyone: the government, the music industry, artists and fans, to stop these closures”
This year’s theme, ‘Behind the Scenes’, covers workshops, discussions, presentations and networking to offer practical support to the people running venues and connect them with services that can help them.
“This year’s Venues Day is bigger than ever, with more venues attending, more delegates, more partners, and more on offer,” says Davyd. “Our goal is to match the size of the event with the size of ambitions for what is delivered on the day, and what we can bring to the sector.”
Last week saw the UK organisation announce the first acquisition under its Own Our Venues scheme. The Snug (cap. 100) in Atherton, Greater Manchester, became the first GMV to be bought by Music Venue Properties (MVP), the independent Charitable Community Benefit Society (CCBS) created by the MVT.
Own Our Venues was launched as a crowdfunded project in June 2022 as the first step in a long-term campaign to take control of the freeholds of music venue premises and bring them under a protected status of benevolent ownership.
“We believe that live music fans understand exactly how vital these venues are to the future of our whole music ecosystem and how much financial difficulty they are currently facing,” adds Davyd.
“127 grassroots music venues have closed in the last 12 months – more than one is permanently closing every week. We need a radical intervention by everyone: the government, the music industry, artists and fans, to stop these closures and turn this around.”
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Ticket resellers to be taxed in the US
People who make more than $600 (€566) a year from reselling tickets in the US are to be taxed under new regulations drawn up by the Inland Revenue Service (IRS).
Previously, sellers only had to report earnings if they made more than $20,000 and at least 200 transactions a year.
The Wall Street Journal reports that under the law companies such as Ticketmaster and StubHub will now have to report if customers sold more than $600 in resale tickets annually. The requirement forms part of the American Rescue Plan Act, which came into effect at the start of the current financial year.
“Payment apps and online marketplaces are required to file a Form 1099-K if the gross payments to you for goods and services are over $600,” says the IRS in a statement.
“The $600 reporting threshold started with tax year 2023. There are no changes to what counts as income or how tax is calculated.”
The move could go some way to cracking down on ticket scalping, with the last 12 months having seen a flurry of demands for tougher regulation of the ticketing market.
Some of the UK’s leading music companies recently joined a fresh campaign against industrial-scale online ticket touting
Fix the Tix, a coalition of 30 US-based organisations across live entertainment, unveiled its plan for ticketing reform back in June, while the extraordinary worldwide demand for Taylor Swift tickets led to calls for stiffer punishments for touting in Brazil.
After local media reported that tickets were being offered for sale in-person and online at up to 10x face value, congresswoman Simone Marquetto proposed the “Taylor Swift Act”, which would increase the maximum sentence for ticket touting from two to four years in prison, and fines of up to 100x the original price of the tickets.
Elsewhere, in Australia, the New South Wales and Victorian governments moved to crack down on touting after resale prices in excess of $3,000 were listed for the Eras Tour, with the latter designating the concerts as “major events,” triggering anti-scalping provisions in state legislation.
And some of the UK’s leading music companies recently joined a fresh campaign against industrial-scale online ticket touting. Led by FanFair Alliance, the campaign is urging MPs to introduce new legislation to “protect British consumers from unscrupulous and exploitative traders who operate on controversial websites such as Viagogo and StubHub”.
WME, CAA, ATC, 13 Artists, Kilimanjaro, FKP Scorpio and One Fiinix are among the parties to back FanFair Alliance’s three pro-consumer measures regarding legislative action, tech action and industry action.
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£5 ‘rush hour’ gig series launched in Manchester
Manchester’s The Stoller Hall has launched a new “rush hour” concert series, designed to help commuters avoid busy travel times.
The hour-long gigs, which start at 6pm, will feature emerging artists and are aimed at motorists and people who normally travel by tram or train during the evening peak (the concert hall is located opposite Victoria train station). Tickets cost just £5 per show.
The performances will take place between September 2023 and March 2024, and are part of the 484-cap venue’s Emerging Artists Scheme, supported by The Haworth Trust, which offers financial support to “deserving young people with exceptional talent who are determined to make a career in the arts”.
“Our new programme of ‘rush hour performances’ is a double whammy – you can support these exceptional young people and avoid busy travel times”
“We are passionate about nurturing new talent and giving a platform to musicians in the early stages of their career,” says Fran Healey, creative commercial director for The Stoller Hall. “Our new programme of ‘rush hour performances’ is a double whammy – you can support these exceptional young people and avoid busy travel times.
“We’re very grateful for the generous support of The Haworth Trust who have made this new programme possible.”
The series kicks off next week with Phoebe Rayner (13 September), followed by Ensemble Renard (7 November), Asaka Quartet (18 January), Smorgaschord Collective (6 February) and Helena Ricci (13 March). A five concerts for the price of four offer is also available.
Meanwhile, the opening line-up for Manchester’s new 23,500-cap Co-op Live is continuing to take shape. A joint venture between Oak View Group and City Football Group, the UK’s largest live entertainment arena is due to open in April 2024 and already has 25 events booked for its first month.
Jonas Brothers were the first act confirmed earlier this summer. The trio are set to perform at the venue on 17 June next year as part of their Five Albums. One Night world tour, with shows by Eric Clapton (18 May) and Niall Horan (27 August) also now announced.
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