recode reported that a series of recently-posted job listings suggest that there is a new ambition to "position Amazon Tickets as the world's premier destination for purchasing tickets".

There may also be plans to integrate ticket sales into the company's Prime membership programme with something called 'Prime Tickets'.

Amazon Tickets was launched in the UK in 2015 and sells tickets for performances by the likes of Blink-182, Drake and Little Mix, and theatre shows and musicals such as Wicked and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.

Ticketmaster has a strong grip on the concert ticket market in Ireland (and throughout Europe and the US), so Amazon would be setting itself quite the challenge if it does plan to take the company on.

Ticketmaster recently announced a new partnership with Spotify which will involve the streaming service emailing gig recommendations to fans "in most markets" with the same data it uses to suggest concerts within the app.

A post on the Spotify Artists blog said that "by increasing the reach and putting recommendations in millions of fans' inboxes, we think we can do much more".

Artists are being encouraged to drive more fans to follow their profiles on Spotify, while users can opt in for early access to the gig emails.