Oasis fans attending the band’s upcoming UK reunion concerts could spend more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) combined on tickets and outgoings such as transportation and accommodation, Barclays bank estimated Wednesday. The study found each fan would spend an average of around £766 to attend one of the British rock group’s 17 sold-out UK concerts this summer.

The total outlay, which Barclays estimates to be nearly £1.06 billion, also takes into account purchases of new outfits, merchandise, food and drink. “The experience economy is no longer a trend, it’s a fundamental shift in how consumers determine their financial priorities,” said Rich Robinson, the British bank’s head of hospitality and leisure.

A chaotic scramble for the prized tickets followed the announcement in August that brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher had ended their infamous 15-year feud and were reuniting for a worldwide tour. Oasis - whose hits include “Wonderwall”, “Don’t Look Back In Anger” and “Champagne Supernova” - kick off the reunion tour on July 4 in Cardiff before playing in their home city, Manchester, the following week.

Almost 1.4 million people combined are expected to attend the UK concerts. Other venues include Buenos Aires, Chicago, London, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto. British bank Lloyds last month reported that fans had collectively lost more than £2 million from UK ticket scams, mostly on Facebook. 

Britain’s competition watchdog has meanwhile said Oasis fans may have been tricked into buying “platinum” seats that offered no additional advantage during the much-criticized ticket sale. The Competition and Markets Authority launched an investigation into agent Ticketmaster following widespread public anger over the exorbitant cost of some tickets. Ticketmaster sold more than 900,000 tickets for the gigs. -  AFP