"Hypocritical And Deceitful" — Fans Slam SM Entertainment And Ticketmaster After NCT DREAM Ticket Sales

Fans were initially thrilled when it was announced that NCT DREAM would bring their world tour, THE DREAM SHOW 2: In A Dream, to different places worldwide.

NCT DREAM | *@NCTsmtown_DREAM*/*Twitter*

Following the European ticket sales, fans in the United States waited with bated breath for information about the tour. Unfortunately, nothing was shared until March 7 – just 29 days before the New York concert.

NCT DREAM TOUR 'THE DREAM SHOW2 : In A DREAM' in US

〖 TICKET SALES 〗
➫ 2023.03.10 4PM (Local Time)
➫ https://t.co/Yc7bN4EC1m

NEWARK
➫ 2023.04.05 8PM (EDT)

CHICAGO
➫ 2023.04.07 8PM (CDT)

ATLANTA
➫ 2023.04.09 8PM (EDT)

HOUSTON
➫ 2023.04.12 8PM (CDT)#THEDREAMSHOW2 pic.twitter.com/nY3uZVrkcz

— NCT DREAM (@NCTsmtown_DREAM) March 8, 2023

Many questions remained after this announcement, including ticket prices and floor setup, some of which were answered by the venues holding the events instead of the promoters.

When ticket sales happened on March 10, fans were shocked to see the extremely high ticket prices throughout the venue. Seats on the general admission floor were priced at over $500 USD for some venues, while “nosebleed” seats sold for upwards of $250 USD.

nct dream ticket prices^^ pic.twitter.com/4tZ7vwgS73

— c (@c_minyg) March 10, 2023

What are these prices for nct dream ? I deadass had to check if I didn’t take of platinum tickets. YOU TELLING NOSEBLEEDS ARE $166-$136…. #NCTDREAM pic.twitter.com/fwYjBFQ19H

— Emelyn | seeing txt & yoongi (@chaeryeongland) March 10, 2023

While fans were not pleased with these prices, what happened later sent many into a rage against both SM Entertainment and Ticketmaster.

As fans settled into their purchases, several returned to the various ticketing sites to see what remained. Tickets in the same sections were found to have dropped dramatically in price — closer to what some fans revealed were the initial prices listed by the venues.

Ticket prices were listed by the Toyota Center, NCT DREAM’s concert venue in Houston, before sales. | Toyota Center

The Dream Show 2 Newark Standard GA Prices
4pm Price $513.15 7pm Price – $320.35

Dead wrong for this.
Ticketmaster won't let you exchange the ticket and get a refund either. Raggedy and deceitful company. pic.twitter.com/gcQjht841S

— Queen V 💚 (@KpopWithV) March 11, 2023

Okay who is going to file a lawsuit bc why are ticket prices less now than what I paid for in similar sections for nct dream newark……and my tickets werent official platinum I double checked before buying its standard admission and even says standard admission pic.twitter.com/ghe7hO7fT9

— chels is seeing nct dream & yoongi 🫶🏻 (@marktunafish) March 10, 2023

While Ticketmaster is known for its “platinum seats,” which are often expensive and change price based on demand, fans felt that subjecting the entire venues to “dynamic pricing” should not have happened.

I will never stop calling out Ticketmaster because why the hell did standard ticket prices DROP for NCT Dream two hours are sales opened. They’re falsely advertising their products and getting away with it. pic.twitter.com/TtEMe0cUgM

— K🌙 ꩜ (@MindGradually) March 11, 2023

Hey @Ticketmaster care to explain why my NCT Dream ticket was marked as standard but now the prices are $150 cheaper in that same row? Doesn’t seem right to immediately drop them to decent prices once the rush is over.

— ruin✨ (@ruinedbykpop) March 10, 2023

Another point that fans brought up is that SM Entertainment claimed that their ticket prices were lower than HYBE‘s in a PowerPoint shared by the company.

just days before sm said they sold concert tickets at the most reasonable price and scold h company for overprice ticket price. Now they're raising the price of nct dream concert tickets at ridiculous prices, wdym 1k usd for a ticket you wanna sabotage Dream so bad do you 😂? pic.twitter.com/GWWnv8nm9D

— gigi 😼🍬 (@injeolmeo) March 11, 2023

didn’t sm put as one of their points in their presentation not to get bought by hybe bc their tix prices are more expensive but then tell me why nct dream’s tickets are literally the most expensive i’ve ever seen???????

— i hate snakeu (@bangtank00k) March 10, 2023

I don’t wanna hear SM talking about HYBE driving up ticket prices ever again. NCT Dream standard tickets were basically double what comparable TXT tickets were. #NCTDREAM_THEDREAMSHOW2 pic.twitter.com/eLUATvXhst

— Leeanne (@RunWineOpine) March 10, 2023

Since ticket sales, some fans have been able to get refunds for their tickets and purchase lower-priced ones. However, according to Ticketmaster’s replies to fans, this will no longer happen as the “Event Organizer has not given authorization” to process any refunds.

for anyone still trying to get a refund from ticketmaster this was the final response i got regarding fluctuating prices for standard tickets lol pic.twitter.com/zeJJC7EJc7

— ashlei (@changukGOs) March 11, 2023

SM Entertainment nor Ticketmaster have released statements clarifying what happened during the ticket sales. Fans of musicians have already pressured the government to investigate Ticketmaster — you can read more about that below.