The case alleges that Ticketmaster engaged in a misleading commercial practice by offering ‘platinum’ tickets to the Oasis concerts for sale in a manner which would be likely to cause the average consumer to be deceived or misled in relation to the main characteristics of that product and to make a transaction that they would otherwise not make.

The ‘platinum’ tickets that had been sold provided no additional benefits or experiences than those being sold as standard.

It is also alleged that Ticketmaster provided the prices for the concerts in a manner that was unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely and “where such a practice was likely to cause the average consumer to make a transactional decision that the average consumer would not otherwise make”.

In the wake of the ticket sales in 2024 the CCPC opened an investigation into Ticketmaster Ireland following a review of more than 100 complaints received by the CCPC helpline.

Brain McHugh, then chair of the CCPC, said: “The CCPC has reviewed more than 100 contacts from consumers who are very disappointed and frustrated about their experience of buying tickets for Oasis concerts. While companies in Ireland are allowed to respond to market demand, there are legitimate concerns over how consumers were treated and we have decided that an in-depth investigation is necessary. If we find that consumer protection laws were broken we will take action.

The CCPC is grateful to consumers who have taken the time to call or email our helpline to share their experiences with us as their stories have helped us develop a picture of last weekend’s events.”

Ticketmaster was accused of using a practice known as ‘dynamic pricing’ for the Oasis concerts where prices rise in line with demand. A common practice in the travel industry where a hotel during a school holiday period can cost significantly more than at other times of the year, its use during the Oasis ticket sales led to calls in Ireland for legislation to ban the practice. 

In the UK the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) similarly opened an investigation that concluded in September 2025. It identified two concerns:

• Ticketmaster did not tell fans waiting in lengthy queues that standing tickets were being sold at 2 different prices, and that prices would jump as soon as the cheap tickets sold out.
• Ticketmaster sold some ‘platinum’ tickets at almost 2.5 times the price of ‘standard’ tickets – without sufficient explanation that these offered no additional benefits over some ‘standard’ tickets in the same areas of the venue,

and secured undertakings from Ticketmaster that fans would be treated fairly. These included telling fans 24 hours in advance if dynamic pricing was to be used and providing more information on ticket prices in online queues.

The CMA did not make any findings on whether consumer law had been breached.

A spokesperson for Ticketmaster said at the time: “We welcome the CMA’s confirmation there was no dynamic pricing, no unfair practices and that we did not breach consumer law.

“To further improve the customer experience, we’ve voluntarily committed to clearer communication about ticket prices in queues.

“This builds on our capped resale, strong bot protection, and clear pricing displays – and we encourage the CMA to hold the entire industry to these same standards.”

As regards the current CCPC action Ticketmaster stated: “As this matter is now before the courts, Ticketmaster cannot comment further at this time.”