FanFair Alliance has urged the Competition And Markets Authority (CMA) to take action against Viagogo after claiming the resale site has failed to comply with a court order to overhaul its practices.
The CMA set a deadline of midnight on January 17 for Viagogo, StubHub and Ticketmaster to improve information about tickets listed for resale. The latter two companies offered formal commitments in April last year.
Viagogo agreed to address all of the CMA’s concerns, without the need for a trial, after the body launched court action against the platform in August over concerns it was breaking consumer protection law. Earlier this week, the platform said that it had made the necessary changes, tweeting: "We have met the deadline and are now compliant."
Further to the agreement we reached with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) we have met the deadline and are now compliant. All tickets on viagogo are valid and it is perfectly legal to resell a ticket or give it to someone else if you want to.
— viagogopress (@viagogopress) January 17, 2019
As part of the order, ticket listings, including the final check out page, must clearly and prominently disclose information including seat location, restrictions on use, face value price and whether the seller is a business or connected to the event organiser or Viagogo.
However, FanFair Alliance, which campaigns against industrial-scale ticket touting, has claimed the changes made by Viagogo do not go far enough to comply with the requirements.
Adam Webb, campaign manager for FanFair Alliance, said: "As of this morning, Viagogo was under strict instructions to overhaul its business practices. Based on our findings today, they have failed to do this. Although a few minor changes have been implemented, some of which may add even more confusion for consumers, we would be astonished if the site is compliant with the terms of its court order.
"FanFair Alliance urges all music fans to avoid Viagogo. It’s practices are an affront to audiences, to artists and to the law. We feel the CMA must now step up and take urgent action."
Yesterday, a cross-section of top international promoters announced the formation of the Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing (FEAT) to promote face-value ticket resale across the continent.
