Well done to GAA for targeting ticket touts

AS the law stands in this country there is nothing whatsoever to prevent price gouging when it comes to selling tickets for major events, be they of a musical or a sporting nature.

We have long witnessed tickets selling out within minutes on sites such as Ticketmaster, only to see them appear shortly afterwards on alternative online channels at vastly inflated prices. This is both exploitative and unacceptable.

We have argued here before that the musicians themselves need to take some responsibility when it comes to this kind of malpractice. One proposal is that tickets could be sold only to those who are officially registered with their fan clubs. That may seem draconian but at least it is an attempt to tackle the touts.

The GAA has, in the past, shown strong leadership in this regard, and is to be commended for stepping in to ensure only loyal fans access tickets for their box-office matches. This week the organisation flexed its muscles again and promptly cancelled specific tickets that appeared online, at multiples of the face-value-price, for the Dublin v Tyrone All-Ireland semi-final.

That such blatant price gouging should be quickly thwarted is, of course, to be welcomed, as is the GAA’s ongoing commitment to stamping out such appalling methods of exploitation.

However, this is only one part of the jigsaw when it comes to tackling, for good, the overall problem.

Earlier this year, Fine Gael TD Noel Rock stated his intention to vigorously push for legislation to bring about an outright ban on ticket touting.

A survey carried out under his auspices illustrated that a massive 86% of people feel that the practice of reselling above face value should be banned – even if job losses are the consequence.

Doubtless Mr Rock has the best of intentions and is, at least, trying to address the situation.

However, there are many issues to be considered here, not least the practical measure of actually policing a new system. For what is illegal here, for example, may not be illegal elsewhere and, as we all know, it is not for nothing that the World Wide Web is so called.

The GAA’s specific intervention in the Dublin v Tyrone match, coupled with its ongoing outlook and stance on this issue, is admirable. As, indeed, is the input of Deputy Rock.

But there also needs to be a stronger commitment across the board, a proper alliance between all vested interests – sporting associations, artists, promoters and sellers – in order for the scourge of price gouging to be eliminated for good.