Germany plans to cap resale ticket prices at 20% or €20 extra

Ever seen a concert ticket for several times its face value on a resale site? Germany wants to put a stop to that.

Justice and consumer protection minister Stefanie Hubig says a law capping resale prices should be in force before the next summer of sport and concerts.

What happened?

The draft is ready and is now being coordinated inside the government, Hubig said. Her aim is to "end the rip-offs" on ticket exchanges.

The plan: resellers may add at most 20 percent to the original price, and never more than 20 euros. "That is fair, easy to understand and easy to enforce," Hubig said.

Why is everyone talking about it?

According to the BDKV (Germany's live-music and events industry association), some tickets are resold for up to 16 times their original price. Commercial resellers often buy tickets in bulk, not rarely with automated software, and then sell them on at inflated prices.

Hubig says these professional resellers harm clubs, promoters and artists, who want tickets to stay affordable for people on smaller budgets. Event tickets, she says, should not be a "speculative asset".

The Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (Germany's federation of consumer organisations) called the plan an "important step". Legal expert Felix Methmann said professional resellers must not profit from artificial scarcity and excessive markups. Ticket platforms, he added, should also be required to be more transparent and take more responsibility.

What came before?

In May, the musicians' association Pro Musik and the BDKV urged the government to act against "usury and fraud" on the secondary market. They pointed to rules abroad: in the UK, the original price, seat number and seller identity must be shown clearly. In the US, the BOTS Act bans automated buying programmes, among other things. Belgium and Italy have similar protections.

What's next?

The draft still has to get through the government's internal coordination. Hubig says it is high time Germany caught up, and wants the law in force before the next sport and concert summer.