Competition & Consumer Protection In Digital Ticketing: The Coldplay Controversy & Regulatory Challenges
- IJLLR Journal
- May 12
- 1 min read
Stuti Mehrotra, OP Jindal Global University
Diti Kothari, OP Jindal Global University
ABSTRACT
Was it merely a rumour, or were you truly robbed of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend and experience the Coldplay concert? This question continues to haunt the minds of all those 11 lakh people who stood in queues on multiple occasions, in the hopes of securing just one ticket. While speculations persist about exclusive agreements with black marketers and bots purchasing tickets in bulk, a definitive answer remains elusive. This paper addresses and clarifies this issue by exploring how the incident, involving inflated resale prices and automated bots, highlights systemic issues of dominance abuse, cartelization, and lack of transparency. Through a comprehensive examination of relevant provisions under the Competition Act 2002 call and the Consumer Protection Act 1019 the paper assesses the intersection of consumer protection and competition law in addressing market failures. The analysis includes key elements such as exclusive dealing, anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance through domestic and international precedents such as Ticketmaster Live Nation case in the U.S. The paper also delves into innovative regulatory measures including Zomato’s resale model and potential frameworks inspired by the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Acts. This paper concludes with a call for cohesive regulatory reforms to promote consumer welfare competitive neutrality and digital market integrity fostering on an inclusive and fair digital ecosystem in India live event ticketing industry.
