Viagogo defends New Zealand ticket resale practices

Controversial ticket reseller Viagogo has defended its online platform in the wake of inflated ticket prices for upcoming performances of the Great Moscow Circus Whangarei.

Responding to criticism from iTICKET, the official ticket seller for the shows, over the onselling of tickets at what it says are “exorbitant prices” Viagogo has said it has no control over the cost of tickets on its resale platform.

Viagogo came under the spotlight this week after organisers of The Great Moscow Circus and iTICKET complained scalpers - many from overseas - were onselling tickets for the Whangarei shows at inflated prices.

In one case, a Whangarei woman paid $156 each for five circus tickets through Viagogo instead of $60.

With Weber Brothers, which is touring the Circus saying it is powerless to intervene, iTICKET has been actively blocking overseas credit card purchasers attempting to buy legitimate tickets.

However, the Switzerland-based company advised in a statement “we have all kinds of ticket sellers on our platform, including fans and event organisers. We do not buy tickets from anyone or any event, we are solely a secure marketplace that exists to connect sellers and buyers.

"Ticket prices are set by the seller and where demand is high and tickets are limited, prices increase.

“Tickets that are listed at unreasonable prices tend to get the most media attention but rarely, if ever, sell.”

Consumer advocacy bodies around the world have issued "buyer beware" warnings about scalpers reselling tickets on Viagogo for inflated prices.

Commenting on Viagogo last year, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stated “consumers aren't getting a fair deal… we are going to do something about it.

Her comments followed the New Zealand Commerce Commission initiating proceedings against Viagogo in 2018, claiming it had made false, misleading or deceptive representations in breach of the Fair Trading Act.

Viagogo faces court or enforcement action in Switzerland, Germany, France, Spain, the UK and Australia. It has been fined in Italy and also been sued by world football governing body FIFA.

Advising that it has made changes to improve customer experience, Viagogo went on to note “we are keen to work with event organisers and rights owners wherever possible to provide an open and transparent platform for customers to access the widest possible selection of tickets to events of their choice, which we believe should be the ultimate goal of everyone in the industry."

Consumers generally end up buying tickets through Viagogo is by searching for tickets online, rather than going directly to the official ticketing retailer.

A search for ‘Great Moscow Circus tickets’ conducted at the Auckland office of the Newshub media group on 5th August (lower image) resulted in a paid Google advert for Viagogo's website above Iticket's website and the event's own official website.

Viagogo buys Google ads to place it at the top of searches above official ticket retailers.