Olivia Dean Shares Ticketmaster Update After Resale Fiasco

By Peter Aitken

Politics Weekend Editor

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British singer-songwriter Olivia Dean has revealed that ticketing platforms Ticketmaster and AXS have agreed to refund fans who bought resale tickets to her shows the difference between face value and the resale price, and will only honor face-value resale for the remainder of her North American tour.

"Thank you for your patience and I'm looking forward to seeing all you real humans at the show," Dean wrote in a post on her Instagram story, in part, adding, "STOP THE BOTS."

Ticketmaster, in a statement from Live Nation Entertainment CEO Michael Rapino shared with Newsweek, said, in part: "We share Olivia’s desire to keep live music accessible and ensure fans have the best access to affordable tickets. While we can’t require other marketplaces to honor artists’ resale preferences, we echo Olivia’s call to ‘Do Better’ and have taken steps to lead by example. We hope efforts like this help fans afford another show they’ve been considering—or discover someone new.”

Why It Matters

The ticket resale market has come under sharp focus after Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour saw tickets sold for only a few hundred dollars initially listed for resale for thousands of dollars on platforms including Ticketmaster, Vivid, and Stubhub.

The case drew national attention and resulted in congressional hearings about what could be done to mitigate or prevent similar issues in the future. However, little has changed, and artists have tried to get creative with their ticket sales.

Dean has enjoyed a near-meteoric rise in the United States after she opened several shows for Sabrina Carpenter last month as part of the Short N Sweet Tour during her stops in Pittsburgh and New York City, followed by an appearance as the Saturday Night Live musical guest for the November 15 episode.

The single "Man I Need" off her latest album, The Art of Loving, has hit the U.S. charts hard in the subsequent weeks, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 while hitting number one in the United Kingdom. She was nominated for the Best New Artist award at the 68th Grammy Awards.

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What To Know

Dean first shared her outrage at the spike in resale ticket prices following the general sale for her North America tour, which saw nosebleeds initially sold for $100 double in price within hours, and almost a week later, selling on some platforms for almost $300.

Dean said she found the news "extremely frustrating" and blamed scalpers and bots for driving up the cost and pricing out her fans, but also took aim at Ticketmaster, Live Nation, and AEG Presents, saying the companies "are providing a disgusting service."

"The prices at which you're allowing tickets to be re-sold is vile and completely against our wishes," Dean wrote. "Live music should be accessible and we need to find a new way of making that possible. BE BETTER."

Ticketmaster immediately responded by saying they would cap the resale of tickets for her shows at face value, and a week later, Dean revealed that discussions continued and have resulted in Ticketmaster and AXS agreeing to refund fans who bought resale tickets.

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"After many conversations with my team, Ticketmaster and AXS have agreed to refund the difference to anyone who has paid over face value for a ticket and will cap all future ticket resale prices to face value for the North American run of the tour," Dean wrote on her Instagram story. "Every artist and their team should be granted the option to cap re-sale at face value ahead of on sale, to keep the live music space accessible for all."

Ticketmaster said that, despite some of the prices and tickets seen on resale platforms, ultimately the data revealed that less than 20 percent of "primary tickets" were listed for resale, indicating that "Olivia's demand was driven by genuine fans who intend to go to the show rather than resellers out for profit."

"In early December, fans who purchased resale tickets on Ticketmaster will receive partial refunds reflecting the difference between the original tour price and the higher price charged by the reseller," the company said in its statement. "Ticketmaster does not receive the markup on those tickets but is stepping in to absorb this refund cost for fans."

Ticketmaster has also called on lawmakers to institute an industry-wide resale cap of 20 percent on resale prices, with no-fee value exchange and verified resale to help limit scalpers and bots from profiting off the secondary market.

What People Are Saying

Ticketmaster, in a statement provided to Newsweek, in part: "To support Olivia Dean’s commitment to fair ticket pricing, Ticketmaster is capping all future ticket resale prices for ‘The Art of Loving Live’ tour on its platform and refunding fans for any markup they already paid to resellers on Ticketmaster.

"Ticketmaster has activated a Face Value Exchange for the tour, effectively immediately but without transfer restrictions, to ensure that any future ticket sales on its site are capped at the original price paid—with no added fees," the statement added. "Ticketmaster was the first ticketing service to offer a Face Value Exchange in 2019 and continues to offer artists the right to cap resale prices prior to going on sale."

Olivia Dean, in her Instagram story, in part: "The secondary market is an exploitative and unregulated space and we as an industry have a responsibility to protect people and our community. Thank you for your patience and I'm looking forward to seeing all you real humans at the show. STP THE BOTS."