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The real deal about festivals isn’t the music, it’s that you can’t bring your own food in. But that’s over

December 17, 2025 by usatoday24

The sentence of Valencia Court against Madrid Salvaje It’s not just about snacks. It is an assault won by consumers in a larger war: that of maintaining cultural experiences without every moment being designed for the purchase and sale of services. A ray of hope in the battle between “leisure as a business” as opposed to “leisure as a social right” that defines our era in an increasingly clear way. The battle for free entertainment. The judgmentwhich comes after the lawsuit from FACUA-Consumers in Action, is the first judicial resolution in Spain which establishes the abusive nature of these prohibitions at music festivals. But its importance transcends the anecdotal, since what is at stake is not only the right to bring a sandwich to a concert, but something more structural: the battle to maintain cultural spaces that are not completely immersed in transactional dynamics. A chronology of victories. A series of rulings can be traced that serve as a preamble to this latest judicial decision and that have paved the way to reach this point. For example, in 2001the María Cristina multiplexes in Toledo lost a lawsuit that certified that prohibiting entry with external products was an “irrational restriction on the consumer’s ability to choose.” There was already talk of “tied sales”: indirectly imposing services that the client had not requested. In 2022 another milestone arrived: the law was enacted that requires all hospitality establishments to offer free tap water. Although the official justification was environmental (reducing single-use packaging), it also served as a basis for this issue of forced consumption. Since then, the fines have increased: Yelmo Cines, for example, was fined 30,001 euros by the Basque Consumer Institute for prohibiting food from abroad. Spanish legal doctrine already makes it clear: if the main activity is showing films or scheduling concerts, hospitality is accessory. Beyond the sandwich. What happens at festivals is a symptom of a deeper mutation: leisure is being colonized by logic that transforms the cultural experience into a financial asset. It is understood if we look at the case of Live Nation, owners of Ticketmaster. In 2024, US Attorney General Merrick Garland defined like this the business model: “Live Nation uses illegal anti-competitive conduct to exert monopolistic control over the live events industry at the expense of fans, artists, small promoters and venue operators.” That is: you control the 70% of the ticketing market in the United States60% of concert promotion, and exclusive contracts with 75% of the large venues (the numbers are comparable in other countries of the world). In this way, each business segment feeds and reinforces the others. Ticket revenue is used to tie artists into exclusive promotional contracts, allowing for long-term ticketing exclusives, with more commission income… and perpetuating itself ad infinitum. By controlling the entire distribution and business chain you earn more money. Parallel trends. This transformation of leisure does not come from nowhere. It is intertwined with a couple of trends that redefine current leisure. On the one hand, the shrinkflation cultural (untranslatable, but here it goes: shrinking inflation), reduce the size of the product while maintaining or even increasing the price. General admission prices to American festivals they rose 55% between 2014 and 2024. And it’s not just that it costs more: it’s that you receive less. What was once included (being able to bring your own food, access to free drinking water, reasonable personal space) is now sold as a “privilege” or outright prohibited. Furthermore, in 2006, Spirit Airlines introduced the “unbundling” model: a cheap ticket that only includes one seat. Luggage, seat selection and priority boarding became extras that, as in 2024 had generated billions of dollars in baggage and seat selection fees. In other words: the unbundling did not reduce the cost of flying, but rather fragmented the final price into multiple hidden charges. Because ultra-low-cost airlines operate with very tight margins in base notes, recovering profitability through peaks that represent up to 47% of income. Festivals follow the same recipe: tickets that barely cover fixed expenses, while the real margins come from drinks and food. And since now live performances are essential for the survival of the music industryit makes sense that all efforts are focused on making it profitable. A crucial moment. After decades of unstoppable advance in the commodification of every aspect of entertainment (from cinema to sports stadiums, passing through theme parks), this judicial ruling indicates that perhaps the pendulum is beginning to swing in the opposite direction, at least in certain details. Consumers may not have completely lost the battle for “leisure as leisure” to the relentless “leisure as business” model that has been theorized for decades (Joseph Pine and James Gilmore spoke in 1998 of“the experience economy” and, even further back, the German sociologists Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer once defined visionary “colonization of free time) Extirpating leisure from capitalism. In 1944, the political economist Karl Polanyi published ‘The Great Transformation’where he argued that land, work and money are essential elements of life that They should never have become commodities. When the market attempts to subordinate “the very substance of society to the laws of the market,” society reacts spontaneously to protect itself from its own disintegration. So this judicial resolution is about being able to enter the next MadCool with a sandwich, but also about something more. Header | James Jeremy Beckers in Unsplash

It is now legal to bring your own food and drink into festivals

December 10, 2025 by usatoday24

It is a battle for consumer rights that is receiving very notable attention, and there is nothing strange about it: it affects some of the most widespread forms of leisure, cinema and concerts, and at stake is the right of customers to bring drinks and food into the venues. FACUA has been filing complaints against cinemas and event organizers for years and today we have a resolution that could set a precedent that changes everything. What has happened? The Court of First Instance number 4 of Valencia has issued the first ruling in Spain declaring null and void the clauses of a festival that prohibited access to the venue with food and drinks purchased abroad. The judicial resolution affects the Madrid Salvaje festival, and considers these restrictions as abusive practices that violate consumer rights as reported by FACUAthe association that filed the lawsuit. The ruling also annuls the charge of three euros as “management expenses” that the organization applied to attendees who wanted to recover the unconsumed balance on the bracelets. cashless. The court expressly prohibits the promoter to reiterate these practices in future events and thus establishes a precedent that could affect future editions of festivals in Spain. Because. The sentence justify your decision in the impossibility of attendees doing without food during the long days that the festivals last. The magistrate emphasizes that requiring users to leave the premises to eat would mean missing part of the scheduled concerts, in addition to generating unnecessary inconvenience. The resolution concludes that this prohibition constitutes in practice a forced imposition of hospitality services that consumers have not requested. That is, preventing entry with food from outside is equivalent to forcing the audience to purchase products exclusively in the festival’s internal establishments, which represents an “unjustified contractual imbalance.” The ruling emphasizes that the fundamental purpose of these events is to offer musical entertainment, with the restoration being a merely accessory element that should not condition the enjoyment of the main show. Repeat offenders. This is not the first time that Madrid Salvaje AIE has faced sanctions for its trade policies. The Community of Madrid has already imposed a fine of 96,000 euros for irregularities committed during the 2023 edition of the Brava Madrid festival. That sanction responded to the imposition of the system cashless as the only form of payment within the premises, without the possibility of paying in cash. In addition, the organization established a period of only seven days to claim outstanding balances. FACUA maintains active complaints against the 2024 and 2025 editions of Brava Madrid. Legal precedents: cinemas. The judicial argument of the case does not arise from nowhere, but is based on precedents established around the film sector. The Superior Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha established in a previous resolution that prohibiting the consumption of products according to their origin constitutes an irrational restriction of the consumer’s ability to choose. That ruling introduced the concept of “tied sales”, identifying how establishments use their dominant position to indirectly force the purchase of complementary services. The report prepared in 2016 by the then Spanish Agency for Consumer Affairs, Food Safety and Nutrition (Aecosan, today Aesan) was especially forceful when analyzing these prohibitions in movie theaters, concluding that the viewer was unjustifiably deprived of the main service they had paid for (watching the movie) when they were unilaterally imposed on them to use accessory services that they never requested, with the sale of food and drink being a secondary activity, not the essence of the movie business. The fines. These rulings regarding cinemas led to specific financial sanctions. The Basque Consumer Institute fined Yelmo Cines with 30,001 euros after a complaint from FACUA Euskadi for preventing access with external food. FACUA Galicia filed similar complaints against Cinesa in the Marineda City shopping center in A Coruña, while the Andalusian federation denounced five Yelmo establishments for repeating this policy after having been previously warned by the Junta de Andalucía in 2019. Implications. This court ruling sets a precedent of enormous relevance for the music festival industry in Spain, being the first resolution that specifically addresses these practices in events of this type. The ruling opens the door to possible retrospective claims by attendees who were affected by similar policies in past editions of Madrid Salvaje or other festivals that have maintained similar restrictions. It is an unequivocal warning about the illegality of such measures. The court decision significantly strengthens the position of consumer organizations, which have been fighting these trade policies for years. The court’s express order prohibiting Madrid Salvaje AIE from reiterating any of these clauses in future events also establishes a control mechanism that could be applied to other promoters. The cases pending resolution in courts regarding analogous situations—both in festivals and in other leisure spaces—now have a solid jurisprudential reference that will predictably influence the rulings. From now on, consumers have the right to freely choose where to purchase their food, which takes precedence over the commercial interests of the organizing companies, which redefines the relationship that existed to date between promoters and the public. Header | Colin Lloyd in Unsplash

Torrejón de Ardoz promised them happiness as the epicenter of the Madrid festivals. Until he started canceling them

December 10, 2025 by usatoday24

Torrejón de Ardoz does not seem willing to become the epicenter of the Madrid festivals. Although City Councils usually boast of their ability to attract concerts, fairs and other mass events, a few days ago the Consistory of the Corredor del Henares did exactly the opposite: published a statement to announce the cancellation of “all macrofestivals that were made in the city.” From their extensive list only one will be saved, Elrow Town. The rest will be forced to find a new location next year. What has happened? Que Torrejón de Ardoz has announced the “cancellation” of three music festivals: Brava Madrid, Madrid Salvaje and Torrejón Summer Fest. The reason? The Consistory alleges basically two reasons. The first, that he wants to “minimize the inconvenience to the neighbors.” The second, that in the opinion of the municipal government, the leisure offer for the inhabitants of the town is already well covered with the Magical Christmass and the patron saint and popular festivals. “They offer an excellent offer of free leisure and a sufficient attraction, such as large events, to promote the Torrejón Ciudad de Moda brand,” he says. Is everything cancelled? No. They fall at least Brava Madrid, Wild Madrid and Torrejón Summer Festbut not the Elrow Townwhich will be celebrated on a holiday (May 1) during daylight hours. From the Torrejón City Council they argue that the festival does not cost the municipal coffers money and represents an “important” source of income for the town. In addition, residents will have the right to purchase tickets starting in April with a 50% discount. Click on the image to go to the tweet. What does it mean for Torrejón? A priori and how recognize the City Council itself, the fairgrounds will be left without events for most of the spring-autumn season of 2026. At the moment there is nothing scheduled for March, April, July, August and September. In June and October there will also be no appointments, except for the celebration of Popular and Patron Saint Festivals, respectively. The strong month will be May, with elrow Town, Tributos, Locos X80 and Urban. The City Council assures that an effort will be made to reduce the acoustic impact, which would even include orienting the stage towards the Polígono de Las Monjas, in such a way that the sound is not directed towards the homes. During elrow Town, the installation of acoustic screens is planned to protect the buildings. Why is it important? Because of the context. Madrid Salvaje, Brava Madrid and elrow Town had not been in Torrejón de Ardoz for long. What’s more, the three festivals they relocated there this year after having to leave IFEMA. In the Torrejonero area they found a large, close space, well connected to Madrid and with green areas. Its great potential led to some saw to the town of Corredor del Henares as the potential new “epicenter” of the Madrid festivals, a not unreasonable possibility after the turn from IFEMA. A few months ago the IFEMA consortium confirmed their decision not to hold outdoor festivals at least in 2025 and focus on indoor ones. The measure came at a special time, with those responsible for the fair institute betting on the organization of the Spanish F-1 Prize, which will be held in September 2026. in spring The World public In fact, IFEMA’s step back from the open-air festivals sought to appease the residents’ spirits ahead of the Formula 1 event and the noise that the cars may cause. Perfect, right? It doesn’t seem like it. Although the festival organizers stood out At the time, the advantages of moving to Torrejón de Ardoz had, in practice things seem to have been different. At least for its inhabitants. In the statement in which it confirms the cancellation of “all macro-festivals” (except elrow Town), the City Council insists that the objective is to “minimize inconvenience to neighbors”, a maxim that goes beyond the musical calendar. “The City Council, listening to the feelings of many Torrejoneros, is going to reduce and celebrate fewer events, concerts and parties, and will focus all its efforts on taking better care of and keeping the city cleaner,” the statement continues. Neither Torrejón nor the neighborhoods close to IFEMA are the first to have seen how difficult it can be to combine the residential use of an area and the celebration of mass shows. Probably the most publicized case is that of the complaints of surrounding neighbors of the Bernabéu, which even led to heavy fines. In Torrejón, an extra element was also added that has little or nothing to do with noise: several festivals They were tarnished by their ties to a pro-Israel fund in the midst of the Gaza war. Image | Elrow Town In Xataka | Madrid has turned Manzanares into a new tourist attraction with LEDs. The neighbors have something to say

The Spanish festivals are in crisis for Israel. Meanwhile, Spring Sound has included bombings in Gaza in its poster

June 4, 2025 by usatoday24

We had not had such a moved season of festivals for years. With the vast majority of the great musical events of summer marked by controversy Related to the KKR Investment Fund, the Spring Soundwhich is celebrated this week in Barcelona, has decided to position itself with an installation halfway between political exhibitionism and the commercial hook. That is pure spring Sound, too. The tunnel. Spring Sound has installed in the PARC of the Fòrum A 15 -meter tunnel that replicates the sounds of the bombings in Gaza. The name of the installation is ‘Unsilence Gaza’, it is the work of the Palestinian sound engineer Oussama Rima and has been done in collaboration with the NGOs Casa Nostra, Casa Vostra and Novact. These have stated that “in spring sounds the sound is emotion, connection, pleasure. But sound can also be the opposite: it can become a weapon.” To this have added a chilling fact: bombings can reach 170 decibels, “much more than the human body can bear.” But … how much of genuine commitment and how much for winking for the gallery in this installation? The problem with KKR. KKR is an American investment fund, one of the world’s largest private capital companies, and whose most criticized activities There are real estate investments in Palestinian territories occupied by Israel, such as Jerusalem Este, Gaza and the West Bank. In 2024, the Fund acquired Supersruct Entertainment, a company that organizes some eighty festivals worldwide and that in Spain is behind events such as Sónar, Arenal Sound, Viña Rock, FIB or Monegros. The reaction of the groups. The response was not long in coming from numerous groups, which They canceled their participation In many of the festivals, and in some cases they launched communications clarifying their exact relationship with KKR. Seventy bandsfor example, they demanded that Sónar a more compromised positioning. Voices have emerged that They ask for the boycott from the festivalsand some like Sónar himself have lost poster heads as ark. At the same time, others Artists like Kase.O either Angelus Apatrida They have decided to keep their commitments to the festivals, which has generated controversy and discomfort with some sectors of their fans. More than festivals. Spring Sound does not have those ties with the KKR, which allows him to adopt a more combative position with respect to Gaza. But he does it in the PS style: for a few years, the festival is giving up the Transformation of Spanish festivals into more than encounters to listen to music. In many of them, the poster becomes something completely secondarybelow socialization: it started years ago with the transformation of the Benicàssim festival at the unavoidable point of meeting of the indie girl Before British invasionand Spring Sound partly collects his witness. And with Noria. Perhaps the spring element that shows the most this option is the Noria that was installed in 2013. Since then they have worked in that direction by approaching the festival more to an leisure center than something else: Food Trucks and gastronomy positions, workshops and activities (many of them oriented to children), Conferencesmultidisciplinary exhibitions, handicraft, fashion and merchandising. An authentic brand and advertising exhibitor, which is the clear current orientation of spring, which in a sense questions its political meaning. It is not Kkr, but. Spring Sound has dodged the summer controversy that has affected practically all its competitors, but it cannot be said that she does not have her own economic commitments. In fact, after its financing There is the American Investment Fund The Yucaipa Companiesled by businessman Ronald Burkle. In that sense the spring Sound is matched with the rest of the festivals: It is a more turned event into a financial asset for foreign billionaires with the excuse of culture. And that it is a business they have never hidden it, as their progressive name changes demonstrate to Estrella Damm Spring Sound or San Miguel Primavera Sound as they were dancing their main sponsors. Ethics of income. Spring Sound financing has always generated innumerable ethical conflicts, as detailed This article by El Salto: Advertising of companies such as SEAT either Spotify while the claim of labor rights is raised; accusations of Purplewashing and Pinkwashing; Propaganda of brands of dubious ethics, for example linked to NFTS … and, in general, marketing of culture, which is always problematic. It spoke in depth by cross in A series of three controversial articles about the birth and evolution of the festival, and that made clear its abundant contradictions. It does not leave Barcelona. The reason that spring sounds so consciously the flag of Catalanity (and with it, of a certain political activism) is precisely that He has not managed to leave Catalonia. The international spring expansion Sound has been a failure: it closed All its Latin American editions In 2024 after the fiasco that supposed The 2024 edition in Madrid. Actually, the latter was the result of a tense Pulse with the Barcelona City Council where interests much more substantial than music were at stake. A series of sticks for the Financial of the Festival, which retains only the first of its first international expansions, Porto, Out of Barcelona. Intermediate point. Spring Sound is a first -order tourist attraction for Barcelona (left 272 million euros in the city in 2024according to a study by the MKTG Spain consultant). Thus, he plays (despite those nonsense with Madrid that They did not set For reasons that have nothing to do with their catalanity) not to lose their purely Catalan identity, with actions of the foundation linked to local training (many of their courses have joined the autonomy study programs). And within that identity is the claim in favor of Gaza, which maintain constant and explicit in aspects such as the programming of Radio Primavera Sound, where they do not have fear of positioning yourself. Business is Business. Spring Sound is a business, and that is why you have to take any type of positioning with tweezers: remember the … Read more

Many Spanish music festivals are financed by an Israeli fund. And some are already distance

May 20, 2025 by usatoday24

After the recent one Eurovision Festivalthe presence of Israeli capital in events around the world begins to be discussed by activists and even by certain governments, as in Spain. Israel has become a uncomfortable presence For certain cultural events and many music festivals, such as Sónar, they are checking it in recent weeks. Sónar takes a step. He Sonar Electronic Music Festival He has distanced himself from the KKR Investment Fund, current owner of the festival through an intermediary company, in a movement that culminates a few days scrambled in the Spanish scene of large festivals. Public opinion and many groups have been contrary to the interference of the company, with pro-Israeli interests, at several festivals. Sónar has expressed With a statement its “solidarity with the Palestinian civilian population trapped in the humanitarian catastrophe that is lived in Gaza.” It is the second one that broadcasts in a few days, after one that He was criticized for his excessive warmth. This statement is a simple declaration of intentions, since Sónar will continue to be the property of KKR. What is KKR? An American investment fund whose acronym corresponds to Kohlberg, Kravis and Roberts, surnames of its founders, and which has established itself as one of the world’s largest private capital companies, with assets of more than 400,000 million dollars. Among the most criticized kkr activities There are real estate investments in Palestinian territories occupied by Israel, such as Jerusalem Este, Gaza and the West Bank. KKR also controls Guesty, an Israeli platform for real estate property management, which reinforces his presence in the country’s housing sector. KKR has also invested in Israeli technology and cybersecurity companies, As Optivwhich was founded by former intelligence ex officers of the Army of Israel. Finally, Henry Kravis, KKR co -founder, is an acquaintance donor of cultural and political initiatives promoted by Israel and has financially supported US politicians aligned with Israeli interests. Within your team there are Figures like David Petraeusformer director of the CIA and president of the group in the Middle East, which makes clear their interests in the region. Festival intervention. A week ago, the newspaper El Salto He published an article About how KKR had acquired in 2024 Supersruct Entertainment for 1.3 billion euros. It is a company that organizes some eighty festivals worldwide and that in Spain is behind events as known as Sónar, Arenal Sound, or are Do Camiño, Love The 90s, Resurrection, Viña Rock, FIB, Monegros, Brava Madrid, Tsunami Xixón or Granada Sound, among many others until they add about twenty of them. At the moment, Sónar is the only one that has been unmarked from the policy of the investment firm, ensuring that he had no “control” on the company’s investments or decisions. Groups that protest. Although the festivals have not been unmarked from the presence of KKR, many groups have done so, especially those linked to social causes. Some of them They are repeat offenders, Fermín Muguruza, Non Servium, the last Ke Zierre, Sinkope, Kaos Urbano or Porretas. And the Spanish case is not unique: the London platform Boiler Roomwhich broadcasts live music sessions throughout the world, has also been acquired by KKR. The DJ and Producer Ikonika and the DJ Beatrice M are two of the artists who have announced their withdrawal from the festival that the company planned to organize in summer. Boiler Room has issued a statement In which he says that the sale has been a decision of his current owners, in which the team has not been able to influence. More festivals. The movement of the groups (and the Very visible action of civil movements such as the known as BDS movement of Boicot, divestments and sanctions against Israel) has encouraged several festivals to join Sónar, as Eldiario.es. This is what Sharemusic!, Organizers of the 90’s, love the twenties or i love reggaeton (“we want to express our total condemnation to the violence that the Palestinian people”), and Rock vineyard (They condemn “without nuances the massacre that the Palestinian people are suffering”). Both, such as Boiler Room and Sónar, clarify that despite the fact that the festivals are owned by KKR, this does not influence the programming or convictions of the teams. Government support. That the music festivals have become a center of attention for their relationship with Israel’s policies are framed in a much narrower observation of different cultural manifestations, with which it seems no longer to serve That “apolitical entertainment”. To the rejection of the bands to the festivals and the dust that has raised the result of Eurovision, the government positions are added. Last Saturday, the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, said the KKR fund “It’s not welcome” in Spain and commented on the “penetration” at music festivals. After Eurovision, Pedro Sánchez himself requested the Exclusion of Israel from international cultural eventslike the festival itself.

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