The Guardian (02/20/23) Raycraft, Molly

With star K-pop acts about to make their U.K. debut in the coming months, fans worry about being shortchanged due to short notice on ticket releases. "The K-pop industry tends to be more explicit about their promotional schedule, and how they promote their music," says music critic and journalist Michelle Hyun Kim. "That may be why it feels so fast." Fans believe the short windows between event announcements and ticket drops give scalpers the upper hand, subsequently driving up resale prices. For example, standing tickets to see Blackpink at the O2 Arena in December began at £160 and reached £500 as demand skyrocketed. Some artists have striven to deliver accessible options for fans, with Ateez offering a longer timeline to buy tickets to their U.K. tour. However, accelerated ticket drops have been advantageous for many other idols by keeping up demand in a highly competitive industry, according to K-pop journalist Hee-ah Park. "For some small and medium-sized agencies, starting ticketing quickly is a way to increase cash liquidity," he adds. Fear of cancellation has also made K-pop fans in the U.K. reluctant to purchase tickets, while fans like Vincent Li concede that "at the end of the day, there will always be people that will still buy tickets, even from touts at inflated prices, because the demand will always be there."

Read the full story from The Guardian.