Tickets went on sale for the long-awaited Australian leg of the punk-rock band Green Day’s Saviour tour. But after die-hard fans waited for hours in online queues and faced Ticketmaster’s infamous technical issues, when the moment finally arrived to buy a ticket, prices varied. For some it was as high as $500.

This is known as dynamic ticket pricing and it’s one of the first high profile tours to use it in Australia, despite it being common in the United States and across Europe.

Dynamic pricing, also known as surge pricing, is the practice of adjusting the price of a product based on an increase in demand. It’s already well established in tourism and air travel where at peak times, such as holidays, hotels and flights will increase in price.

Australia’s live music market is controlled by three companies, one of which is Live Nation, that owns Ticketmaster and dominates the market in securing international tours.

In 2022 Ticketmaster launched dynamic ticket pricing in Australia, pitched to help fight ticket scalping. Ticketmaster said in a statement that these in demand tickets would: “Give fans fair and safe access to sought after seats at market driven prices.”

In WA ticket reselling is capped at 10% the original purchasing price by law.

On October 14, 2024 Four Corners revealed that Ticketmaster, and its competitors, were charging hidden fees for concert tickets.

The Federal Government announced in the following days that they intend to crack down on dynamic pricing and a law firm is currently investigating Ticketmaster and could be launching a lawsuit.

Ticketmaster responded to our request for answers for unfair pricing practices by linking to their frequently asked questions.

An ACCC spokesperson said that increasing prices during periods of high demand was not illegal, but businesses should not mislead their customers.

WAAPA marketing manager Anton Maz said that there were lots of working and middle class music fans who have been deeply affected by the cost of living crisis.

“They need a bit of entertainment and respite from their struggles, now more than ever, and then their favourite band re-forms and decides to go on tour and the chances of you getting a ticket for less than $300 is slim,” said Mr Maz.

An Australian Institute survey in 2024 found that two in three young people ages 16 to 25 said that attending music events was important to them, and 59% said the biggest barrier for attending concerts was the cost.

Earlier this year another rock band from the 2000s, Oasis, announced a reunion tour in the UK and used dynamic pricing for their highly anticipated tickets via Ticketmaster.

Joe* was an Oasis fan from the UK who said their music was a huge part of his life, even inspiring him to get a degree in music performance. Since the band broke up when he was 13 this concert was the only way he could see such an influential part of his life live.

However, the experience of buying tickets was “abysmal”, with tedious waits in online queues longer than the stadium capacity, site crashes and when he eventually made it to the purchasing point it was only to find his ticket dynamically priced.

Curtin University professor in consumer research Billy Sung said that dynamic ticket prices allowed companies to maximise profit by capitalising on a consumer’s fear that if they don’t pay now, the tickets may be sold out or cost more in the future.

While dynamic pricing is leaving behind a boulevard of broken dreams for many fans, Mr Maz believes that art remains priceless.

“We keep forgetting in the conversation how a particular song or a particular piece of art has helped you get through a real difficult time in your life. You can’t put a price tag on that.”

*last name withheld on request