The federal government has announced it will ban dynamic pricing, a controversial tactic which drives prices up when demand increases, following a Four Corners' investigation.

It's also committed to outlawing hidden fees in concert tickets and drip pricing where extra costs are "added throughout the stages of a purchase".

Four Corners revealed that Live Nation's ticketing arm Ticketmaster and its competitor Ticketek are charging music fans hidden fees for concert tickets that are included within the overall cost price.

Live Nation has also used "dynamic pricing" in Australia — most recently for Green Day's tour, where some fans paid up to $500 for a ticket — and has flagged plans to expand its use of the practice.

Australian artists told Four Corners those extra fees are not trickling down to them, as many musicians struggle to make a living from live touring.

"From concert tickets to hotel rooms to gym memberships, Australians are fed up with businesses using tricky tactics that make it difficult to end subscriptions or add hidden fees to purchases," the federal government said in a statement.

"These practices can distort purchasing decisions, or result in additional costs, putting more pressure on the cost of living."

Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones told ABC RN Breakfast the government had made a "firm decision that we're going to crack down on it".

"A lot of these online ticket sellers and others have engaged in what can only be described as [a] sharp and tricky practice," he said.

"I welcome the fact that ABC through Four Corners and others have put a spotlight on these practices. Consumers have had enough and the government's going to act.

"We'll be looking at the entire economy … dynamic pricing, which is affecting everything from getting a ticket to a sporting event to pop concerts."

The government also flagged that it would look at so-called subscription traps — practices that can make them difficult to cancel.

The "crack down" comes despite Arts Minister Tony Burke telling Four Corners in an interview for Monday's program that surge, or dynamic pricing is "not something we're looking at, at the moment".

"Surge pricing is something that, as consumers, people have always dealt with. I don't love it, but I think we have to be realistic, it's always been there," Mr Burke said.

Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino told shareholders earlier this year the company plans to expand dynamic pricing in countries like Australia.

"We still think that's a multi-year opportunity to continue to grow our top line and bottom line," he said.

The company, which owns Ticketmaster, reported record revenue of almost $US23 billion ($33.8 billion) last year.

"Ticketmaster does not set prices, nor do we have or offer algorithmic surge pricing technologies," Live Nation said in a statement responding to Four Corners' earlier questions about the practice.

"Ticketing companies do not control how artist teams and other event organisers price their shows or whether they adjust prices up or down based on demand.

"We have tools to help artist teams understand demand for their tickets."

Four Corners found that concert goers face a raft of hidden fees – some of which they are unaware of. For a ticket over $65 at the Palais Theatre in Melbourne, for example, music fans can be charged up to $30 to $40 of fees.

It's unclear if the government's new measures will put an end to that sort of practice.

Live Nation told the program that "tickets are actually priced by artists and teams".

"Ticketmaster complies fully with Australian Consumer Law by incorporating per ticket or percentage fees into the price of the ticket paid by fans, and prominently disclosing any optional or transaction level fees," Live Nation said in a statement.

"These fees support essential services, including tech development and innovation, customer service, security and compliance, all of which require significant investment."

Live Nation added that Ticketmaster doesn't set fees, and they are decided by venues to "cover costs for both the venue and the ticketing company".