Earlier this week, the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) took aim at secondary ticketing platforms — and called on Congress to act — after an alleged wave of “fake” Oasis tickets. Now one of the accused platforms is hitting back and sparking an ugly war of words with Ticketmaster.

Yesterday we reported in detail about the letter from NIVA and the associated “Fans First Act” initiative. In summary, the organization specifically took StubHub and Vivid Seats to task over thousands of allegedly counterfeit/speculative tickets for the North American leg of Oasis’ upcoming tour.

The organization stated that these resale tickets were likely inflated and were allegedly listed before there was “evidence that a single ticket for the highly sought-after concert series was sold to the public.” NIVA also stressed that lawmakers should immediately address the “widespread fraudulent practices perpetuated by predatory ticket brokers and resale platforms.”

Of course, there are two sides to every dispute and, unsurprisingly, the accused ticketing platforms have a lot to say about the allegations. Echoing StubHub’s response, a representative told us for now that the Oasis tickets in question are not fake/speculative at all.

Rather, the company claimed the passes were due to more targeted pre-sales initiated before primarily Presale. As we discovered yesterday, Oasis’ North American pre-sales – at least as announced in a tweet from the band themselves – are said to have started on October 3rd.

To provide clarity, Oasis addressed the matter on September 30 on X. “There will be an advance ticket sale this Thursday, October 3rd,” the group wrote. “Participation is only possible through private voting. Ballot registration is now open and closes tomorrow, Tuesday, October 1, at 8 a.m. ET.”

Meanwhile, Ticketmaster officially announced the tour in a media release on September 30th. “Presale registration is currently open until Tuesday, October 1 at 8 a.m. EST at www.oasisinet.com,” the Live Nation affiliate wrote in part. “General ticket sales begin Friday, October 4th at 12 p.m. local time and are available at www.ticketmaster.com.”

In both messages there is no reference to different pre-sales. But according to StubHub, which included an email screenshot for good measure, people including Chicago Bears season ticket holders, among others, were invited to purchase Oasis tickets on the 30th. (An Oasis show is scheduled to take place at the NFL team’s home stadium in late August 2025.)

“CLICK ON THE BUTTON BELOW TO ACCESS YOUR EXCLUSIVE PRE-SALE STARTING MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 12 PM (CT),” the all-caps notification reads in part, appearing to come from the Bears’ official email account was sent.

As if that weren’t enough, the platform provided a lengthy statement from global head of government relations Laura Dooley, who called on Ticketmaster to “do its part to better protect fans.” We included these comments in full at the time of publication; Shortly thereafter, Ticketmaster came forward with its own response, stating bluntly: “StubHub is lying.”

In other words, the extremely public verbal tussle suggests that the all-out dispute is unlikely to end any time soon. On the policy side, it will be interesting to see how (or if) StubHub’s disclosure impacts fans, especially given NIVA’s originally highlighted legislative efforts – and the House’s quick passage of the TICKET Act, which NIVA also supports, beginning of 2024 The way forward in the first act.

Here is the full statement from Laura Dooley, Global Head of Government Relations at StubHub:

“It is clear that Live Nation Entertainment-Ticketmaster and the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) have partnered to spread false information about ticket availability to further their own political agenda and incite distrust in the secondary market. There is a lack of transparency about how tickets are allocated, sold and distributed in the primary ticket market. This prevents consumers from understanding how the ticket industry works and allows dominant players to manipulate the market. Tickets may appear on resale markets prior to public sale as many industry stakeholders, such as season ticket holders, sponsors and professional resellers, receive early access – this was the case with Oasis.

At StubHub, our top priority is getting fans excited about events. We prohibit the sale of speculative tickets and call on Ticketmaster to open lines of communication, provide ticket verification services and do their part to better protect fans.”

And the response from a Ticketmaster spokesperson:

“StubHub lies. Oasis tickets were made available for sale on StubHub immediately after the North American dates and venues were announced, before resale and before anyone was entitled to specific seats – as the listings explicitly claimed. The season ticket holder’s excuse is baseless. For the shows in Pasadena, Toronto, Mexico City and New Jersey, no season ticket holder was eligible to receive tickets. Even in Chicago, no one had advance rights to the individual seats offered for sale on StubHub.

Ticketmaster prohibits anyone from offering resale tickets before an official presale. StubHub and other resellers prefer to look the other way. This ongoing pattern of deception requires that Congress pass and enforce a comprehensive ban on speculative ticket sales.”