Reselling tickets for concerts in Sweden are available for less than $100, making a trip to Europe to see Taylor Swift perform surprisingly cost-effective. Some fans are finding it more affordable to attend a concert in Europe than in Canada, with Bryan Kingston being one of them. He was shocked to find floor seats to an upcoming show in London for $500 each on a resale site, especially since he had paid double that amount in Detroit last year. “I was surprised to discover that it was much cheaper,” said the 40-year-old advertising professional from Hamilton, Ontario.
“The actual amount I paid for my flight to Europe differs from others.” Despite still spending a considerable amount, for Kingston and fellow Swifties who can manage the cost, traveling for the concert may be more worth it than seeing it in Canada when factoring in the expenses of a hotel and ticket. He mentioned having friends going to Scotland, Portugal, and France, and couldn’t resist the chance to turn the concert trip into a vacation. “It truly is the greatest show I’ve ever experienced, or else I wouldn’t be making this journey.”
Pop star concerts have become a hot commodity, with tickets for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour selling out quickly in North America and Europe, only to appear on resale sites at inflated prices. While a Toronto concert ticket is going for $2,822 on StubHub, fans in Stockholm can get in for just $83. Economics professor Pascal Courty from the University of Victoria explains that the disparity in ticket prices can be attributed to basic supply and demand principles. Swift’s European tour includes 51 shows in 18 cities, but the demand varies from country to country. In some places, Swift may not be the top artist, leading to lower ticket prices. So if you can’t snag a concert ticket, don’t worry – you can still join fellow Swifties at ‘Taylgate’ in Toronto.
According to Courty, the high demand for tickets in Canada, along with the limited number of shows (only nine) by Taylor Swift, leads to higher prices on the resale market. Courty believes that if Swift performed more frequently in Toronto, ticket prices would eventually decrease due to decreased demand. It could take multiple concerts before the demand is satisfied and prices stabilize.
Restrictions on reselling tickets In Europe, fans still encounter inflated prices when purchasing resale tickets, but various governments have been taking action to tackle this issue. Countries like Ireland, Portugal, and Denmark have implemented laws that prohibit tickets from being resold for more than their original price. France has particularly strict regulations, with offenders facing substantial fines. According to Sam Shemtob, who heads the Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing (FEAT), these changes have had a positive impact. He notes that there are now fewer instances of tickets being resold at a profit, thanks to the clear and direct laws in place. In contrast, Canada currently lacks national regulations that restrict how much profit can be made from reselling tickets. The federal government has promised to address unfair ticket reselling practices in its recent budget, but specifics on how and when these changes will be implemented remain vague.
According to Quebec regulations, companies must obtain authorization to resell tickets above their original price. On the other hand, individuals are allowed to resell tickets at any price they see fit. Julia Rawleigh, a fan from Calgary, felt disappointed by the sky-high prices of resale tickets after missing out on the initial sale for a concert. “It was infuriating to see people immediately reselling tickets for exorbitant prices right after they were released,” she expressed. Rather than dwelling on the frustration, the 27-year-old restaurant manager decided to let it go and made alternate plans to attend Taylor Swift’s concert in France. “We were thrilled to snag tickets for the Lyon show at $250 Canadian dollars. We were so excited that we didn’t even bother to check the seat locations,” she shared.
Is there a solution? Enforcing laws on the secondary market proves challenging, as Courty points out that people will always manage to sell tickets at inflated prices regardless. To address this issue, American singer-songwriter Billie Eilish is taking action for her upcoming tour by making tickets non-transferable. This feature, provided by Ticketmaster, is available for all artists to opt for during their tours.
If fans in Canada or the U.S. are unable to make it to the concert, they can only resell their tickets on Ticketmaster at the price they originally paid. The concert details emphasize that the priority is to provide genuine fans with the opportunity to purchase tickets at face value, rather than allowing scalpers to profit. Ticketmaster, a prominent figure in the live events industry, has faced criticism during Swift’s tour due to issues with online pre-sales in the U.S. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating its parent company, Live Nation, amid allegations of market power abuse. However, Ticketmaster denies any responsibility for the high ticket prices. Courty believes that a effective solution would be to implement nominative tickets, where the purchaser’s name is directly linked to the ticket and identification must match. This system would effectively eliminate ticket reselling for profit.
