Yee again: in Russia they proposed to change the rules of ticket sales because of Kanye West

Due to the uncertainty surrounding Kanye West's October shows in St. Petersburg, the Consumer Union of Russia has proposed a review of ticket sales rules. The initiative was sent to the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Federation Council Committee on Science, Education and Culture, and the State Duma Committee on Culture. The organizers of the show may be required to enter into an agreement with the venue and confirm agreements with the artists before the start of sales. In addition, the authors recommend abandoning the practice of selling non-refundable tickets under the guise of promotions. Read more about the initiative in the Izvestia article.

What could change for concert organizers

The proposals relate to the procedure for holding entertainment events and should, according to the authors, protect buyers from situations where the sale of seats begins before all necessary arrangements are finalized. The documents are at the disposal of Izvestia, the editorial board has sent requests.

The reason for the appeal was Kanye West's two shows scheduled for October 10 and 11, 2026 at Gazprom Arena. Tickets for them began to be sold on August 17.

Photo: Getty Images/Rune Hellestad - Corbis

Most of the seats were quickly bought out. However, on August 24, the venue announced that the lease agreement with the organizer, Say Agency, had not been signed, and therefore the event could not take place at the stadium. The concert agency still insists that the shows have not been canceled. The lease agreement, the company said, was scheduled to be signed by August 27. As a result, thousands of spectators who managed to purchase tickets were in limbo.

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The Consumers Union believes that this story has shown a gap in the current regulation. The authors of the initiative propose to allow the sale of tickets only after confirmation of the basic agreements. These include an agreement with the venue and the artists, and, if necessary, coordination with the authorities. According to the Consumers Union, this will help protect viewers from unscrupulous organizers and financial schemes.

Photo: Getty Images/Anadolu

Another suggestion concerns promotional tickets. The authors believe that the current rules allow them to be declared non-refundable even with a symbolic discount — for example, only 1%. The Consumers' Union proposes either to repeal this rule, or to establish clear requirements for such offers and warn customers in advance that they will not be able to return the ticket.

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What are the current rules?

Now the law protects the viewer well enough if the concert has already been canceled, postponed or replaced, but it works worse at the ticket sales stage, and the situation with Kanye West confirms this, says the Director of legal affairs of the legal service. DestraLegal.ru Boris Feldman.

— In St. Petersburg, an event of more than 300 people must be coordinated with the Committee on Culture. The organizer must submit an application in advance with information about the event, including the venue, date and number of participants. At the same time, tickets for Kanye's concerts began to be sold even before signing an agreement with the arena and obtaining the necessary approvals. However, the federal law itself does not prohibit starting sales at this stage," the expert says.

Photo: Getty Images/Francine Orr

According to him, the second controversial point is that the organizers have too broad a right to declare promotional tickets non—refundable. This is now causing concern to viewers who hastily bought seats to the scandalous rapper's St. Petersburg shows. Most of them were sold under the "Start" promotion, which was valid from August 14 to August 23.

— For regular tickets purchased on August 24, there is a general voluntary refund procedure: since there are more than 10 days left before the concert, according to the law, the audience must be refunded 100% of the cost. The situation is more complicated with those purchased from August 14 to August 23 for a special promotion. The organizer has the right to make them non-refundable if the viewer himself refused to attend. However, if a concert is cancelled, postponed or replaced, this rule does not apply — the buyer must be refunded the entire amount," Boris Feldman explained in an interview with Izvestia.

Arguing for the proposals, the Consumer Union of the Russian Federation notes that when a concert is disrupted, the audience often has to return the money through the courts, as the organizers evade their obligations. According to the authors of the initiative, the new requirements will help reduce the burden on courts and relevant authorities, make the ticket sales market more transparent and increase audience confidence in the organizers.