No fraud in pricey Adele ticket resales say Dutch authorities

The Dutch Authority for Consumer and Market (ACM) dropped its investigation into the resale of concert tickets, launched after public outcry surrounding tickets for Adele concerts earlier this year. According to the regulator, there is no evidence of fraud or illegal activity in reselling concert tickets for higher prices on sites like Seatwave, ANP reports.

According to ACM CEO Chris Fonteijn, the fact that tickets resell at much higher prices has to do with the popularity of the concerts. "Where there is strong demand for a product and low supply, prices are inflated", he said.

Minister Henk Kamp of Economic Affairs asked the ACM to investigate Live Nation - the company that owns concert organizer Mojo, ticket seller Ticketmaster and sales site Seatwave - following madness surrounding ticket sales for Adele concerts in Amsterdam. Tickets for the Adele concerts sold out within half an hour of going on sale, only to reappear on sale sites at much higher prices - some even selling for nearly 5 thousand euros a piece.

The ACM concluded that the high prices on Seatwave are not the result of agreements between Ticketmaster and the site. There is no evidence of exclusive resale of concert tickets. And Ticketmaster and Seatwave aren't themselves active as ticket resellers. Seatwave offers consumers a platform on which they can resell their tickets to other consumers - it is the consumers themselves who determine the price of the resold ticket. The fact that tickets are sometimes available through Seatwave even before the official sale started has to do with special presale actions for fan clubs.