Ticket Resale Consultation Responses Published

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell O'Connor, has announced the publication of the responses received by her Department to the recent public consultation on the resale of tickets for entertainment and sporting events.

The consultation was undertaken in response to public concern at the resale of tickets for major entertainment and sporting events at a price often well in excess of their face value. The consultation paper looked in detail at a number of relevant aspects of ticket resale, including:

• The workings of the primary and secondary ticket markets for entertainment and sporting events

• How tickets sold or allocated through the primary ticket market end up for resale on the secondary ticket market and who puts them for resale

• The legislation regulating ticket resale in Ireland, other EU member states, the US and other countries  

• What different stakeholders do, or do not do, to address the issues and concerns raised by ticket resale.

Announcing the publication, the Minister said: "I would like to thank the individuals, sporting organisations, promoters, primary and secondary ticketing service providers and others who took the time and trouble to respond to the consultation.

"Their responses contain a considerable amount of interesting and informative material about the organisation of major entertainment and sporting events and the operation of the primary and secondary markets for such events.

"They cover a range of different views on the matters at issue and put forward a range of different, and in some cases conflicting solutions, as to what might be done to help ensure that ticket markets would work better for music and sports fans in the future.

"I would encourage everyone with an interest in the issue to read and reflect on the responses to the consultation. Before decisions are taken on a complex issue with a number of different dimensions, it is important that we have the fullest possible understanding of the issues and interests at stake and the widest possible debate on the policy measures that should be adopted."

The responses can be accessed on the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation website.

(MH/JP)