Channel 4 statement re: viagogo

24 February 2012

Viagogo sought an injunction to protect live events promoters and revenue information and not as they claimed to ‘prevent customer information being made public'.

Viagogo said in a statement: "We sought an injunction to prevent customer information being made public. Our number one priority is to protect our customers' data, so we will always do whatever we can to prevent that information from falling into the wrong hands."

Channel 4 note the statement from viagogo but would like to make it clear that the information that viagogo sought to protect at the High Court was not personal consumer data but was in fact the identities of the promoters or any other persons or companies who had allocated primary tickets to viaigogo including SJM Concerts and Live Nation. 

They also asked the High Court to prevent us publicising the fact of the allocation of primary tickets to viagogo, the number of such tickets, and amount for which the primary tickets were sold for events featuring the following acts: Coldplay, Rihanna, Take That, Strictly Come Dancing Tour, Westlife, Will Young and the X Factor tour.

They also asked the court to prevent Channel 4 from publicising the splits of revenue between viagogo and the promoters on the sale of these primary tickets to the public. 

The High Court rejected viagogo's case on the ground that this information was not protectable as commercially confidential and even if it had been the judge found that the public interest in reporting these facts was entirely justifiable.

He rejected viagogo's application for leave to appeal.  They then repeated that request to the Master Of the Rolls who also rejected their request on all grounds.  

Notes to Editors

‘The Great Ticket Scandal: Dispatches' - is available to watch on http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/4od

Join in the discussion on Twitter using #TicketScandal

For more information on the investigation:  http://www.channel4.com/info/press/news/channel-4-dispatches-defeats-injunction-attempt-by-viagogo