Officials raided StubHub and Viagogo in ticket tout investigation
Officials from the UK's Competition & Markets Authority raided the offices of secondary ticketing companies Viagogo and StubHub earlier this year, it has emerged. The regulator forced its way into the two firms' respective London offices as part of its ongoing investigation into the ticket resale business.

As previously reported, the CMA launched an investigation into the big four ticket resale platforms - so that's Live Nation's Seatwave and Get Me In as well as Viagogo and eBay's StubHub - in June last year. In part, it wanted to assess whether the companies had made good on previous commitments to ensure certain information was always provided to buyers by ticket sellers using their platforms.

The CMA is also seemingly investigating the relationship between the resale sites and industrial-level touts. Although the touting platforms like to talk about individual fans using their websites to sell on occasional tickets to shows they can no longer attend, the resale firms actively court prolific resellers who tout for a living. They then provide these top level touts with extra services and kickbacks.

According to The Guardian, the CMA issued an 'information notice' to the four secondary ticketing services demanding they each hand over details of any relationships they have with the most prolific sellers. The newspaper's sources say that while the two Live Nation-owned services complied with the notice, Viagogo and StubHub did not, hence the raids.

Responding to The Guardian's report on the CMA raids, StubHub said simply: "We understand the CMA investigation is ongoing and therefore await the outcome of this".

Viagogo, meanwhile, stated: "La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la, we can't hear you, you're not really there!!!!!!" Probably.

For its part, the music community led anti-ticket touting campaign FanFair welcomed the news that the CMA had acted in this way to access more information about how resale platforms work with the prolific touts.

A spokesperson told CMU: "These reported actions by the CMA are a welcome development. It is no secret that the model of so-called 'secondary ticketing' promoted by Viagogo, StubHub, Get Me In! and Seatwave has resulted in UK audiences being systematically ripped off on an industrial scale. Contrary to their slick marketing campaigns, these platforms are dominated by professional touts who are seemingly offered incentives to sell ever higher volumes of tickets".

Noting this raid - and revelations about one Canadian super-tout contained in the so called Paradise Papers (more on which in a minute) - the FanFair spokesperson added: "What we now need is root-and-branch reform. As well as regulatory action, we urge the Culture Media & Sport Select Committee to revisit the issue of ticket abuse and for the government to enforce legislation in a meaningful way. The UK is celebrated for its live music scene, and we should have the best and most transparent system of ticket resale - not a market polluted by these shabby and disgraceful practices".

The CMA is apparently liaising on all this with National Trading Standards, which is also investigating the touts. And while neither organisation wanted to comment on the raids of Viagogo and StubHub, the latter did caution consumers about buying touted tickets.

It told The Guardian: "With concerts and events increasingly refusing to accept resold tickets we'd strongly advise people take steps to protect themselves by only buying tickets from official sellers, most of which are working with the authorities to help ensure more tickets are made available to genuine fans through official vendors".

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Canadian super-tout pops up in Paradise Papers
An industrial-level ticket tout based out of Canada but touting tickets for UK shows has popped up in the much reported Paradise Papers of offshore finances. The papers apparently show that Canadian tout Julien Lavallee ran part of his operation through the Isle Of Man in order to avoid paying UK tax on hundreds of thousands in ticket sales.

Lavallee's tax arrangements - which are likely legal - have been unearthed alongside an investigation by CBC News in Canada on the scale of his ticket touting operation. The broadcaster has obtained sales records from three Adele concerts in the UK where, despite a four-ticket-per-customer limit, Lavallee's company reportedly managed to buy up 310 tickets in 25 minutes using fifteen different names and twelve different locations.

The quantity of tickets Lavallee's firm managed to buy up at speed suggests he was using software to make the purchases, ie those pesky ticket touting bots.

CBS News quotes Reg Walker of Iridium Consultancy as saying: "The speed of the transactions - this isn't somebody sitting there typing details over and over again. Given the success rate, even if you had a dozen people sitting there typing their details over again, you would not get these results. It's simply not feasible".

As previously reported, the UK Parliament only recently moved to make the use of ticket tout bots illegal, though using such technology arguably already breaches the Computer Misuse Act. Industrial touts like Lavallee may also be breaking other consumer protection laws due to the lack of transparency when tickets are sold on the secondary market.

Lavallee is allied with StubHub in the UK, having seemingly bragged in 2015 that he was planning to expand his ticket touting operation from Canada into the British market via a "partnership" with the eBay-owned company. That might simply mean that he has access to the extra services the resale sites often offer top-sellers.

StubHub wouldn't comment on its relationship with the Canadian, but did say: "StubHub agrees that the use of bots to procure tickets is unfair and anti-consumer. StubHub has always supported anti-bots legislation and encourages policy-makers to look comprehensively at the host of factors that impact a fan's ability to fairly access, buy, resell, or even give away tickets in a competitive ticket market".

Meanwhile, back in the Isle Of Man, Lavallee seemingly dissolved the company he had set up there after an investigative journalist came knocking. At his actual HQ in Montreal he declined to comment, but had his lawyer tell CBS: "[Our client] carries out all its activities in accordance with the laws and rules of the jurisdictions in which it operates and sells".

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Bucks promotes Anthony Hippsey to A&R role
Bucks Music Group has announced Anthony Hippsey as its new Creative A&R Manager. He will also continue to run the Bucks Music management company.

"Ant is a real asset to the company and has done a great job leading Bucks Music Management", says the music publisher's Creative A&R Director Sarah Liversedge Platz. "He is a natural when it comes to working creatively with artists, producers and songwriters - he understands their day to day needs and helps champion their ambitions. This wider A&R role will complement his management duties perfectly and allow us to service the talent across our existing rosters even more completely".

Hippsey joined Bucks last year, having previously spent time at Big Life and Spilt Milk. Since then, he's signed six new acts for management, including producer Jordan Riley and recently BMG-signed singer Katya Edwards.

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Hope & Glory promoter writes to Isle Of Man government demanding money
The man behind the disastrous Hope & Glory festival in Liverpool this summer, Lee O'Hanlon, is back, this time reigniting an old feud with the Isle Of Man's government.

The dispute relates to a falling out over two shows previously promoted by O'Hanlon on the island, one headlined by The Jacksons in 2014 and another last year by Tom Jones. O'Hanlon has previously made a number of accusations against the Isle Of Man's Department Of Economic Development, claiming that he was "cheated" out of money he was owed on the Jones show.

Now O'Hanlon has written to the island's Chief Minister Howard Quayle and Economic Development Minister Laurence Skelly noting recent accusations - linked to the much reported Paradise Papers - that the island's government actively welcomes tax avoiders, and again demanding the money he believes he is owed. That letter has now been published by local radio station 3FM.

O'Hanlon writes: "Given that the world is watching how you deal with the millions and more that bypass through the Isle Of Man (I'll not be the one to judge how proper or not that is), I was wondering if now might be a good time to pay me the £63,000 you owe me?"

He goes on to describe the amount as "paltry", adding: "I was delighted to see Laurence is saying any tax evasion will be investigated. I can only hope the same will apply to your government not paying me what I am due. Go Laurence!"

As previously reported, the Hope & Glory festival in Liverpool collapsed after its first day. An investigation by Liverpool City Council - itself the subject of various accusations from O'Hanlon - found that "mismanagement" on his part led to "a catalogue of errors" at the event. There was overcrowding, bands went on late (or in the case of Charlotte Church, not at all), and O'Hanlon abruptly announced the cancellation of the festival the morning of what should have been its second day, apparently without telling anyone else involved first.

The company set up to run the festival subsequently went into liquidation, owing almost £1 million to creditors. This included over £200,000 to ticketing companies Eventbrite and Skiddle, which refunded ticket holders out of their own pockets after it became apparent that the festival would not.

Something about glasshouses and stones.

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Attitude Is Everything launches DIY guide for accessible gigs
Live music accessibility charity Attitude Is Everything has published a new 'DIY Access Guide' for bands, artists and promoters showing how to make gigs and tours more accessible for deaf and disabled audiences.

The zine-style publication is being made available for the first time today at the Off The Record conference and festival in Manchester. It offers advice on cheap ways to make shows more accessible, including how to set up an accessible seating area, making DIY captions for lyrics, what information to include on online event pages, and what can be done at shows in an inaccessible venue - for example if the stage is down some stairs.

"Attitude Is Everything has ambitions to make all live music events as inclusive as possible - and particularly those promoted at small grassroots venues", says AIE CEO Suzanne Bull. "Even what appear relatively minor changes can make a big difference in practice. That's the reason we've put together this easy-to-use guide".

She goes on: "Nobody should be cut off from their local music scene - whether that's the millions of disabled people who want to attend gigs and shows, or deaf and disabled artists who are looking to perform. By following our simple advice, promoters and artists can help make live music so much more accessible, and attract a whole new audience into the bargain".

The charity will also host a panel at Off The Record on accessibility issues at live shows. Titled 'Break Down Barriers, We Will Come', it will take place today at 3.15pm in Mancehester's Central Methodist Hall. More info here.

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Musical.ly acquired in deal worth up to $1 billion
Musically-orientated social network Musical.ly has been acquired by Chinese media firm Beijing ByteDance Technology Co. The deal is worth between $800 million and $1 billion, according to various reports.

Founded in China in 2014 and popular with The Kids, particularly in the US, Musical.ly allows users to create short music videos. It claims over 200 million registered users. Bytedance announced the deal to buy the platform this morning, although did not disclose the value of the deal. It also said that Musical.ly will continue to operate as a standalone company.

Bytedance CEO Zhang Yiming said in a statement: "Musical.ly will continue to operate as an independent platform, integrating Bytedance's global leading AI technology and leveraging its reach in China and key markets across Asia to enhance Musical.ly's offering to users, creators, and partners".

Musical.ly co-founder Alex Zhu adds: "Musical.ly's vision is to make entertainment more personal, participatory and interactive, by enabling anyone to be a content creator. We see AI as a critical factor in augmenting human creativity. Bytedance's leading AI technologies and top-notch AI developers can empower us to innovate faster and roll out new user offerings unlike anything users have experienced before".

He continues: "We have recently also been focused on expanding into Asian markets, and this partnership will allow us to access Bytedance's massive userbase in China, Japan and Korea, and around Asia. This will enable us to provide a completely unique experience to our content creators, influencers, celebrities, and media partners on the platform".

Earlier this year, Musical.ly announced integration with Apple Music, allowing users to listen to complete songs before chopping out fifteen seconds for their latest video.

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Wireless group announces nine new local DAB music stations, plus four (FOUR) Christmas-themed channels
News UK-owned radio firm the Wireless Group has announced it will launch nine (or seven, depending on how you count) new regional music stations on DAB, as well as no less than four Christmas-themed pop-up stations. You really never can have too many.

"This investment reinforces our commitment to local radio in our regions", says Wireless Group CEO Scott Taunton. "We hear our listeners' demands, and following research into their tastes and preferences we have committed to an array of exciting new stations. I'm confident they will prove to be in-tune with our listeners and advertisers alike".

Local radio Programme Director Terry Underhill adds: "Whether you are after Christmas classics, 80s chart toppers, greatest hits or the best new music, our new non-stop music stations have got past, present, future and Christmas all wrapped up".

Of the new permanent stations, which will all launch on 1 Jan, three are Scottish Sun branded (it being another News UK-owned media, of course) and will be available in Scotland only. Those are Scottish Sun 80s, Scottish Sun Hits and Scottish Sun Greatest Hits. Not sure why you'd tune into the hits station when you know there are greater hits on another channel.

Meanwhile, Wireless's existing 'Total Access' youth show aimed at under 25s, which broadcasts each weeknight across its network, will be spun off into its own station, available in Staffordshire/Cheshire, South Wales and West Yorkshire.

The remaining three new outlets are Signal 80s in Staffordshire and Cheshire, Wave 80 in South-West Wales, Pulse 80s in West Yorkshire.

But what of these Christmas stations? Do we have to wait until 1 Jan to switch on to those? Hell no, three of those are all on the air from today. You can listen to Signal Christmas, Wave Christmas and Pulse Christmas right now in their various regions. And from next Friday, you'll be able to listen to Scottish Sun Christmas in Scotland. Lucky you.

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PPL reveals Northern Ireland's most-played artists
It's the Northern Irish Music Prize ceremony tomorrow night, which brings to a close a week of music-related events under the banner of Sound Of Belfast.

Collecting society PPL is one of the sponsors of that event, and ahead of all the award festivities it has done some number crunching to identify the most played Northern Irish artists of the 21st Century so far. And - based on PPL's data - these are the acts harking from Northern Ireland who have enjoyed the most radio and telly plays since 2000...

1. Snow Patrol
2. Van Morrison
3. Feargal Sharkey
4. Ash
5. Two Door Cinema Club
6. The Divine Comedy
7. David Holmes
8. Them
9. The Undertones
10. Gary Moore

Say's PPL's Head Of Communications Lynne McDowell: "This most played list really serves as a reminder of how many great artists Northern Ireland has produced over the years. From heritage artists like Van Morrison and The Undertones to newer acts like Two Door Cinema Club, the local scene is clearly in rude health, as is exemplified by the quality of the artists nominated for this year's Northern Irish Music Prize".

The Sound Of Belfast proceedings continue up until tomorrow night's awards bash, including an Industry Essentials programme hosted by Help Musicians NI at the Oh Yeah Centre today. As part of that programme CMU:DIY will take to the stage to provide a beginner's guide to the streaming business, and how young artists can get their music online. CMU's Chris Cooke will talk all things digital at 6pm.

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Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly announces new album
Sam Duckworth in his Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly guise has announced a new album, 'Young Adult', which will be released in January. This news arrives accompanied by not one but two new singles, 'Adults' and 'Always'.

"'Adults' came from a friend of mine who has young children", he says of the first single. "I think one of the things you discover growing up is that there are far fewer 'adults' than you think. As a child asks where are all the adults, us young adults often feel the same but are expected to find stability in a world where the rug is being swept from under our feet. It's a song about reading analysis of social change but feeling that there is a disconnect between the analysis and the outcome of the analysis. Are we all backseat drivers? Who will take the wheel? Surely that's a job for the adults".

The second single is a different affair, seeing Duckworth team up with drum n bass producer Shy FX. He explains: "'Always' was written at the start of the year, as part of a series of sessions for Shy FX's album. It was a magical session, with a revolving door policy. It was very creative and all artists had room to bring their unique styles to a common environment".

He continues: "The song is about the increasing isolation and anxiety felt when a significant moment in your life changes your whole perspective. Be it in childhood or adulthood, we have all had sea change moments where things don't look or feel the same. This manifests in all of us differently, but sometimes the spiral of neglect is difficult to break. It's a song in solidarity with those who have had their world shaken by negative incidents that will forever be used as psychological barometers for instinctual feelings".

'Young Adult's is out on 19 Jan. Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly will play a one-off show at London's Village Underground the night before on 18 Jan.

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Beef Of The Week #380: Canada v F***
OK everyone, time to update the charts on your wall. It's now fine to say 'fuck' on the radio at any time of the night or day. The only stipulation is that you must be in Canada. Oh, and you need to speak loads of French before and after you say it.

This story actually begins with the subject of a previous Beef Of The Week - Madonna's speech at the Women's March in Washington, DC back in January. And, specifically, a discussion about that speech on Montreal-based French language radio station CKOI-FM.

In this case, the issue was not Madonna admitting that she'd thought about blowing up the White House since the election of President Trump - although presenter Kim Rusk did express some concern about this - it was the clip of the speech broadcast in the middle of the afternoon, in which Madonna said: "And to our detractors that insist that this march will never add up to anything... fuck you".

Rusk then noted that Madonna had apparently repeated "fuck you, fuck you, fuck you". Though what Rusk actually said, and this is very important here, was: "Évidemment, elle le répète là 'fuck you, fuck you, fuck you', elle a dit que ça. Mais elle a dit aussi une chose. Elle dit ceci. Et moi ça me trouble: 'Après l'élection, j'ai pensé très très fort et souvent à faire sauter la Maison-Blanche'".

A listener offended by this repeated use of the good old f-word wrote to CKOI to complain. While the station did apologise for causing offence, it nevertheless refused to accept that it had done anything wrong. Partly on the basis that, as primarily a music station, listeners to CKOI would apparently be interested in anything Madonna might have to say, sweary or otherwise. But mainly because French-speakers, in general, don't find the word "fuck" offensive.

"We acknowledge that some [sensitive] ears may be offended by that often-called 'four letter word'", the station wrote in its response. "However, in French culture, this word doesn't arouse much reaction. We would even put forward that this English 'dirty' word is now, perhaps unfortunately, part of the common French spoken language".

The complainant, identified as Mr F in correspondence, was not impressed by the response, and so took the matter to the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council in March.

"The broadcaster's response consists in mostly justifying the use of the expression 'fuck you' on the air before telling me it judges me to be sensitive", Mr F wrote to the regulator. "My perception of this reply is the broadcaster does not take me seriously and thinks I'm annoying. That is not an acceptable response".

Later the same month, Mr F wrote to the CBSC a second time, angered that the f-word had appeared on the radio station during the day yet again. "They're doing it on purpose", he seethed.

In this case, the sweary pop star being quoted was Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong, and the appearance of the bad word on-air did seem slightly more gratuitous. After a listener said during a phone-in that they'd recently seen Green Day live, presenter Pierre Yves-Lord played a clip of Armstrong protesting after the band's performance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival was cut short in 2012.

"What the fuck?! I'm not fucking Justin Bieber, you motherfuckers", is what Armstrong said. But with Lord and the caller's chat around it, it looks like this:

Lord: Ça lui est déjà arrivé lors d'un gala télédiffusé un moment donné de faire "OK là, vous m'avez demandé d'arrêter là, gang?!" Pis ça -
Caller: Ouin. Ouais, ouais ouais. Non, j'sais, y avait pas apprécié ben ben.
Lord: Non, hein?
Billie Joe Armstrong: What the fuck?! I'm not fucking Justin Bieber, you motherfuckers!
Caller: C'est ça.
Lord: T'aimes ça, qu'on devienne des légendes là, t'sais?

"That's what legends are made of", Lord said at the end there. More to the point, it's what investigations into the use of inappropriate language by broadcast regulators are made of.

At the request of the CBSC, CKOI issued a response to this second complaint, reiterating that the word 'fuck' just isn't all that offensive to French-speakers - this one French-speaker who keeps complaining excepted, of course.

"We reiterate the fact that the use of these words in French-language programmes does not have the same connotation as in English and does not attract much attention among Francophones today", said the station. "These words have entered the popular parlance and the current vocabulary of the French-speaker".

It went on: "They are commonly heard on private television and public television, in variety shows, soap operas and movies. They are read in rock music magazines, such as Classic Rock, Mojo, Record Collector, Uncut and many others. Although some may consider this situation deplorable, a language is both alive and reflective of its current society".

In many ways, that seems like a very long-winding way of saying "fuck off". It's a shame they didn't just say "fuck off", because that would have been much funnier. I mean, Mr F wouldn't have been happy with that response, but he wasn't happy with the one he actually received either. The same day, he wrote to CBSC again, this time requesting a final judgement on the matter.

"The broadcaster keeps stating that it is all right to say 'fuck you' on a French radio station and that they are not held accountable to the same standards as everyone else", the complainer wrote. "They use the expression very regularly; I think they favour its use because it was used on two days out of three last I listened to them".

You might say that if this person dislikes the use of this word so much, they would be advised to just stop listening to this particular radio station. But perhaps they have no choice. Maybe Mr F hears it at work. Or perhaps it's blasted out of loud speakers in the streets. I don't know, but in either case he could check whether anyone else around him is offended.

Still, he continued: "I am still waiting on a ruling for the first complaint and I will ask for a ruling for the third complaint I made and I will continue until they stop using the expression 'fuck you' or you contact me with a relevant ruling".

Well, Mr F, that day has come. CBSC's panel of adjudicators has finally sat down and given it some thought. I'm not sure you're going to be happy with the answer though.

The panel did note that Canadian broadcasting rules state that "reflective of local community standards" radio stations should avoid using "unduly coarse and offensive language".

However, it went on to say that the matter of whether 'fuck' counts as "unduly coarse and offensive language" when heard during French-language broadcasts had already been addressed in another ruling last year. And in October 2016 the regulator ruled that the word had indeed become less offensive among French-speakers in recent years.

There were certain stipulations in that ruling though. The primary language of the broadcast must be French, it must be used infrequently, and it must not be used to insult or attack a specific group.

The panel concluded that both instances which had prompted Mr F to complain met these criteria, and therefore no rules had been broken. Which, I think, is another long-winded way of saying "fuck off".

Alors, fuck moi si ce n'était rien qu'une fucking perte de temps énorme pour tous les fucking participants.

[Please only read that last sentence if you are in French-speaking Canada.]

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