This week, it was announced that Oasis will reunite for a highly anticipated UK tour.
Prior to this, the band had been notoriously embroiled in a decade-spanning feud, but this eagerly awaited reunion means that the band will put their differences aside for the first time since 2009.
With tickets going on sale this weekend, the band announced that there would be a 24-hour pre-sale ballot. However, fans were surprised when they had to answer a ‘fan question’ to access the pre-sale: ‘Who was the drummer in the original Oasis line-up?’
In light of this, experts at QR Code Generator explain the impact of answering ‘fan questions’ when acquiring concert tickets.
The downsides of answering ‘fan questions’ to gain access to pre-sale tickets
After the Oasis pre-sale ballot went viral, fans immediately took to social media to express their dissatisfaction at having to answer the fan question, which was likened to a ‘pub quiz question’.
Numerous Oasis fans expressed their disappointment at the number of people Googling the answer, complaining that the question did nothing to separate the ‘fake fans’ in the pre-sale ballot. Some fans hope that the website will be able to identify those who momentarily left the ballot to Google the answer.
Ultimately, the ‘fan question’ for the Oasis pre-sale stirred controversy, with thousands of fans accusing others of ‘cheating’ by looking up the answer.
Oasis announced on social media that there has been an ‘unprecedented’ demand for tickets, resulting in three new UK dates being added to the tour. Due to the popularity of the iconic band, it has been widely reported that trying to obtain tickets for the summer tour will be chaotic, with many fans expecting to end up disappointed.
Does pre-sale access work when it comes to getting tickets?
Thousands of fans have already taken to social media to complain that they have not yet received a confirmation email from the pre-sale ballot, which raises questions about the fairness of pre-sale access.
Other fans are concerned that two separate confirmation emails have been sent out, with rumours circulating that one email is intended for ‘loyal fans’ who are guaranteed to secure tickets in the sale.
Recently, fans were widely disappointed at not being able to gain pre-sale access for Sabrina Carpenter’s anticipated summer tour, Short n’ Sweet. In America, fans were required to buy the singer’s CDs to access the pre-sale ballot. Despite thousands of fans complying with this request, many were left disappointed when they could not obtain tickets in either the pre-sale or general sale.
A similar pattern was reflected in fans trying to gain pre-sale access to Taylor Swift’s celebrated Eras Tour concert, with many believing that those selected for pre-sale access were chosen randomly and unfairly.
However, pre-sale access does not lead to disappointment solely in the music world. Back in 2020, there was a worldwide scramble of people trying to get their hands on the newly released PS5. In anticipation of this demand, people were required to have a Sony account to access a PS5 pre-order direct from the company. However, this simply resulted in masses of fans all signing up for a Sony account at once, leading to a global shortage of the PS5 console.
Marc Porcar, CEO of QR Code Generator, said, “Ultimately, it goes without saying that pre-sale access does not guarantee access to the final product, particularly in the case of concert tickets. However, it seems unfair that dedicated fans are disadvantaged in pre-sale ballots, particularly when they are obliged to buy products beforehand in the hope of securing a ticket.
“There’s a recurring trend in that people are unprepared for additional steps during the pre-sale period, particularly when there is high demand for the final product. These pre-sale ‘fan questions’ and requirements are clearly outdated practices, and there needs to be fairer methods for distributing pre-sale access.
“In the case of the Oasis pre-sale ballot, there is a consensus that fairer techniques should be employed to identify long-term fans from the masses of people applying for pre-sale access. For example, it has been widely suggested on social media that those signed up for the Oasis newsletter should be placed at an advantage.
“It will be interesting to observe over the next few years whether the Oasis pre-sale access will affect how other companies arrange access to pre-sales in the future.”
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