October 19, 2012 8:35

Ticketmaster under fire for charging fans to print tickets

Online ticket site charging £2.50 to print tickets

Photo: Lili Forberg/NME

Ticketmaster has been criticised for charging fans £2.50 to print tickets at home.

The fee has been attacked by fans who will now have to pay extra to receive a service they are delivering themselves. The fee charged for printing is often little less than it costs to have them delivered.

Consumer watchdog Which? has spoken out against the charge, saying: "We believe companies shouldn’t charge extra to print off tickets and should include costs in the headline price."

Ticketmaster hit back at the criticism, however, stating that a "lack of understanding" from the public was behind the unrest. They stated that the £2.50 fee covers admin costs at their end as well as the cost reading and validating tickets at the venues.

A Ticketmaster spokesperson said: "Without these systems in place, there is a risk that multiple copies of the same ticket could gain access to the event. Our clients do not usually pay Ticketmaster separately for supplying this technology and service."

The latest change in ticketing charges comes in the same week as The Rolling Stones were attacked for charging between £90 and £375 per ticket for their forthcoming London dates.

The band will perform two nights at London's 02 Arena on November 25 and 29 to celebrate their 50th anniversary. They will also be playing two nights at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey in the US on December 13 and 15.

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