Google reneges on tickets website vow

GOOGLE has failed to take action against a ‘fraudulent’ ticket resale site that has refused to reveal the massive mark-ups it charges.

The search engine had vowed to stop advertising Viagogo unless it ‘prominently’ displayed tickets’ face value by the end of last month. Viagogo pays millions to appear first on internet searches for tickets for events by performers such as Kylie Minogue and the Rolling Stones. Its top-ranking dupes many into thinking it is the official ticket seller, when it is in fact hawking second-hand – and often invalid – seats at hugely inflated prices. But yesterday Google continued to pocket cash from Viagogo even as the site continued to see second-hand tickets sold without any indication of their true cost. An £18 ticket for Taylor Swift at the Big Weekend in Swansea next month was being sold on Viagogo for £358.77.

Google admitted it did not know when it would enforce the rule to make ticketing sites show face value prices.