Are pricey concert tickets making live entertainment less accessible?

The price of concert tickets has risen drastically due to issues of dynamic pricing, re-selling, and high VAT. These institutional and industry reasons for such high prices are preventing many people from having the opportunity to partake in live events.

Dynamic pricing- Dynamic pricing occurs when concert ticket prices increase with demand. Therefore, high demand can limit accessibility. Oasis’ UK comeback tour tickets were advertised as £148 and increased to £355 during general sale. Those who had saved for the advertised price were either forced to pay double or give up on their tickets. 64% of British consumers believe this practice is unfair.

High demand can limit accessibility

Re-selling- Re-selling allows people and companies with tickets to resell. This process usually increases prices as the re-sellers seek to profit, often leading to exceptional prices that most fans cannot afford. Taylor Swift tickets were resold at an unbelievable $20,000 in one instance. With 53% of Britons believing that a standard ticket for a large-scale concert should be £40 or less, re-selling means many people are missing out on live entertainment.

VAT- In the UK, VAT on tickets is 20%, one of the highest in the world and 9% higher compared to Europe. VAT considerably influences the high price of tickets, making live music inaccessible. On top of the two previous reasons for the concert price rise, people are now pursuing other options. With the push for online concerts, such as Beyonce’s Netflix documentary ‘Homecoming’, more and more people are turning their backs on the live entertainment industry due to the high cost.

Although tickets for large concerts are becoming more expensive, many people can still access live entertainment, with 2.5 million tickets sold for the O2 arena alone in 2023. The live entertainment industry is also booming because smaller artists remain cheaper, and many continue fighting against restrictive ticketing structures like dynamic pricing.

Smaller artists- It is often forgotten that smaller artists are more accessible compared to the £100+ for general standing tickets. Ticketmaster has a ‘nights out under £35’ section listing smaller artists. Dylan John Thomas, a Scottish artist who supported Liam Gallagher on tour, sells tickets for only £20. Live music can be accessible if you are looking for smaller artists and new talent.

It’s difficult to name pricing inaccessible when millions continue to access live music

Demand- Despite rising costs, the demand for concerts remains excellent. Until this lessens, it is unlikely live entertainment pricing will lower. It is hard to argue pricing is inaccessible when millions of people continue to access live music. For example, 1.4 million tickets for Oasis sold out within hours regardless of the ticket price of £148.50+ for general standing. If millions continue to pay high prices, companies remain under the impression that prices are accessible.

Artist efforts- Some artists have boycotted the dynamic pricing system and made efforts to keep their concerts accessible. Yungblud, an artist with 6.9 million monthly Spotify listeners, appalled with the prices of festivals, created his festival ‘Bludfest’ with entry at £49.50. Artists with this attitude are helping to keep the industry accessible.