Ticket resale – Wikipedia
“Scalper” redirects here. For cutting of the human scalp, see scalping.
Ticket resale (also known as ticket scalping or ticket touting) is the act of reselling tickets for admission to events. Tickets are bought from licensed sellers and are then sold for a price determined by the individual or company in possession of the tickets. Tickets sold through secondary sources may be sold for less or more than their face value depending on demand, which tends to vary as the event date approaches. When the supply of tickets for a given event available through authorized ticket sellers is depleted, the event is considered “sold out”, generally increasing the market value for any tickets on offer through secondary sellers. Ticket resale is common in both sporting and musical events.
In this 1920s cartoon by Tad Dorgan, people wishing to attend a boxing match are told that all the good tickets were sold (to “specs” — that is, speculators) yesterday, even though the match was only announced that morning.
Ticket resale is a form of arbitrage that arises when the number demanded at the sale price exceeds the number supplied (that is, when event organizers charge less than the equilibrium prices for the tickets).
During the 19th century, the term scalper was applied to railroad ticket brokers who sold tickets for lower rates. [1]
Purchase and re-sale methods[edit]
Ticket re-sellers use several different means to secure premium and previously sold-out ticket inventories (potentially in large quantities) for events such as concerts or sporting events. Established re-sellers may operate within networks of ticket contacts, including season ticket holders, individual ticket re-sellers, and ticket brokers. They make a business out of getting customers hard-to-find and previously sold-out tickets that are no longer available through the official box office.
A ticket scalper at “work”
Ticket scalpers (or ticket touts in British English) work outside events, often showing up with unsold tickets from brokers’ offices on a consignment basis or showing up without tickets and buying extra tickets from fans at or below face value on a speculative basis hoping to resell them at a profit. There are many full-time scalpers who are regulars at particular venues and may even have a pool of loyal buyers.
One common concern with resale is with scam artists selling fake tickets to unsuspecting buyers. Another common practice is scalpers that sell tickets that have already been scanned at the venue gate since entry is typically allowed only when a ticket is scanned for the first time. Since the tickets were authentic, buyers do not have a way of telling if a ticket had been used or not.
A concern when buying tickets on the street from a ticket scalper or via an online auction is that the tickets sold by ticket re-sellers may themselves be stolen or counterfeit. For many major sporting events, counterfeit tickets are auctioned off in the months leading up to the event. These criminals and their activities are not to be confused with legitimate ticket brokers and individuals who abide by the law to legally resell tickets on the secondary market.
In 2009, Ticketmaster started adoption of a “paperless” restricted ticketing, in which tickets could not be resold. Under this system, customers prove their purchase by showing a credit card and ID. [2] The measure was taken in response to ticket scalping and resale markup of tickets on secondary markets and adopted during Miley Cyrus (2009) World Wonder Tour, although Ticketmaster first experimented it with AC/DC’s Black Ice World Tour (2008–10). [3][4] Ticketmaster has since changed the name of the system to “Credit Card Entry”. The system requires large groups to enter together with the person who purchased tickets. Some events have Ticket Transfer which allows the tickets to change ownership and allow for tickets to be transferred through Ticketmaster’s proprietary systems. These cannot be later resold or transferred via ticket exchanges such as StubHub. [5]
Ticket presales[edit]
Obtaining tickets through special presales has become more common. These presales often use unique codes specific to an artist’s fan club or venue. The advent of presales has allowed more individuals to participate in reselling tickets outside of a brokers office.
Although derivatives was a practice in use mostly in the 1980s, some ticket brokers offer tickets even before the tickets are officially available for sale. In such scenarios, those ticket re-sellers are actually selling forward contracts of those tickets. One example is a company called TicketReserve, which is making money by selling “options” on future sporting events. This is often possible if the reseller is a season ticket holder. Season ticket holders generally receive the same exact seat locations year after year thus they can enter a contract to deliver on tickets that they own the rights to, even if those tickets have not even been printed or sent to the original ticket holder.
Automated scalping bots[edit]
In recent years, fraudsters have started to use more complex methods by which they obtain tickets for resale on the secondary market. Similar to the technology used to snatch up rare shoes and sneakers, [6] automated bot attacks have become a common way to acquire large numbers of tickets only to resell them for higher profits. What fraudsters will do is deploy thousands of bots from untraceable IP addresses in a brute force attack as soon as a venue or ticket seller first makes them available for sale. In 2017, one of the largest online ticket sellers Ticketmaster filed a lawsuit against Prestige Entertainment for their continued use of scalper bots despite paying $3. 35 million to the New York Attorney General’s Office just a year prior. [7] Ticketmaster claimed that Prestige Entertainment was able to lock up 40% of available tickets for performances of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, as well as a majority of the tickets Ticketmaster had available for the Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fight in Las Vegas in 2015. In an effort to curtail such behavior, Congress moved to pass the Better Online Tickets Sales Act of 2016, more commonly referred to as the BOTS act. [8] The legislation was signed into law in December 2016 by then President Barack Obama. The BOTS act enforces several penalties and fines for parties found guilty of using bots or other technology for undermining online ticket seller systems with the hopes of selling them on the secondary ticket market.
Ticket brokering[edit]
Ticket brokers operate out of offices and use the internet and phone call centers to conduct their business. They are different from scalpers since they offer a consumer-facing storefront to return to if there is any problem with their transaction. The majority of transactions that occur are via credit card over the phone or internet. Some brokers host their own websites and interact directly with customers. These brokers are able to offer additional services such as hotel accommodation and airfare to events. Other brokers partner with online ticket exchanges. These sites act as marketplaces that allow users to purchase tickets from a large network of brokers. Some brokers offer advice on the best way to buy tickets starting with the box office and working with a broker if tickets aren’t available through the box office. [9]
Online ticket brokering is the resale of tickets through a web-based ticket brokering service. Prices on ticket brokering websites are determined by demand, availability, and the ticket reseller. Tickets sold through an online ticket brokering service may or may not be authorized by the official seller. Generally, the majority of trading on ticket brokering websites concerns itself with tickets to live entertainment events whereby the primary officially licensed seller’s supply has been exhausted and the event has been declared “sold-out”. Critics of the industry compare the resale of tickets online to ‘ticket touting’, ‘scalping’ or a variety of other terms for the unofficial sale of tickets directly outside the venue of an event.
The late 1990s and early 2000s saw the emergence of online ticket brokering as a lucrative business. U. S. corporate ticket reselling firm Ticketmaster developed a strong online presence and made several acquisitions to compete in the secondary markets. Securities analyst Joe Bonner, who tracks Ticketmaster’s parent company New York-based IAC/InterActiveCorp, told USA Today: “You have to look at the secondary market as something that is a real threat to Ticketmaster. They missed the boat. StubHub has been around a few years now already. They weren’t as proactive as they probably should have been. “[10] Ticketmaster launched fan to fan secondary ticket reselling site TicketExchange in November 2005. Ticketmaster acquired former rivals GetMeIn and TicketsNow, [11] while eBay bought StubHub. [12] In 2008, the Boston Red Sox chose Ace Ticket over StubHub to sell their tickets. [13] There are also independently owned online ticket re-sellers such as viagogo and SeatMarket.
Criticism[edit]
For popular events with sold out tickets, re-sellers may sell the tickets at several times the face value. If re-sellers buy the tickets and the tickets are not then sold out, then they risk a loss. [14] There may be individuals who wish to attend a popular event (and decide to sell their tickets later) and those that buy tickets in large quantities in order to resell their tickets for a profit. Some countries have restricted the unauthorized resale of tickets.
In 2008, Internet ticket fraud had emerged as global problem, when fake ticket websites defrauded millions of dollars from sports fans by selling Beijing Olympics tickets which they had no intention of delivering. [15][16]
According to Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch, many online ticket resellers use URLs that are similar to official box-office websites, sometimes implying via their texts or their pictures that they are official, use internet advertising to increase traffic to their website, and don’t clearly state the real prices they charge for a ticket. [17]
International responses[edit]
It is controversial whether tickets are goods which can be privately resold. Typically private resale will contravene the original conditions of sale, but it’s legally questionable whether the original conditions of sale are even enforceable, however, most venues declare that they have the right to refuse entry to anyone.
Australia[edit]
Depending on the ticketing body’s conditions of sale, tickets may be voided if they are resold for a profit. This is so with Ticketek tickets (Ticketek is an Australian-based ticketing company). Efforts to clamp down on ticket resale have included labeling tickets with the name or a photograph of the buyer, [18] and banning people without tickets from the vicinity of the event to prevent the purchase of secondary market tickets.
In Australia, the secondary ticket market has been put under much scrutiny in the past few years as ticket scalpers dominated the resale ticket market. Scalpers would purchase tickets in bulk from the promoter hoping that the tickets would sell out causing an increase in demand for tickets and thus an increase in the ticket price. This caused event promoters to put restrictions on the number of tickets that can be purchased in one transaction, which has greatly reduced unfair ticket pricing. After many complaints from the community and event promoters, the DFT (Department of Fair Trading) and CCAAC (Commonwealth Consumer Affairs Advisory Council) conducted a survey discussing scalping issues and released The Ticket Scalping Issue Paper for NSW. [19]
In Victoria, some events are declared as “major events” and protected by the Major Events Act 2009. [20]
Canada[edit]
Quebec put into law “Bill 25” in June 2012, making it illegal for ticket brokers to resell a ticket for more than the face value of the ticket without first obtaining permission from the ticket’s original vendor. Brokers reselling tickets are required to inform consumers the tickets are being resold and must tell consumers the name of the ticket’s original vendor and the original face value price. The penalty to violating the law includes fines of $1, 000 to $2, 000 for the first offense, and as much as $200, 000 for repeated violations. [21]
In Ontario, re-selling the tickets above face value is prohibited by the Ticket Speculation Act and is punishable by a fine of $5, 000 for an individual (including those buying the tickets above face) or $50, 000 for a corporation. [22]
Effective July 1, 2015, in an effort to protect consumers from purchasing fraudulent tickets, Ontario created an exemption under the Ticket Speculation Act to:
Enable official ticket sellers to authenticate tickets that are being resold
Permit tickets to be resold above face value in circumstances where tickets are authenticated or have a money-back guarantee
Allow tickets to be resold at a price that includes any service fees paid when the ticket was first purchased. [23]
Following an announcement in 2016 that The Tragically Hip’s lead singer Gord Downie had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, the band held the Man Machine Poem Tour. Ticket re-sellers reportedly purchased two-thirds of all available tickets, to capitalize on public demand. [24] As a result, in 2017, Ontario announced legislation to attempt to crack down on scalper bots. [25]
Ireland[edit]
In the Republic of Ireland, there are at present no laws against ticket touting, and it is common at online outlets such as or In 2011, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, declined to pass a law against touting, saying it would just drive re-sellers to websites based abroad. [26][27] Ticketmaster, Ireland’s main ticket seller, runs a service called Seatwave which resells tickets, some at wildly inflated prices. [28] However, selling tickets in a public place (e. g. outside a venue) is illegal under the Casual Trading Act, 1995 — in 2015 Kazimierz Greń, an official of the Polish Football Association, spent the night in a cell after being arrested for selling tickets outside an Ireland–Poland football match. [29]
Israel[edit]
In Israel, in 2002, The Knesset put into effect the 67th amendment to the Israeli Penal Code, enacting Section 194a, which outlaws ticket scalping. The new section states that unlicensed persons reselling tickets at above face value will be subject to fines. The new addition to the penal code enabled police to fight the ticket scalping of sports and music events (especially those scalpers that bought massive numbers of tickets for the sole purpose of resale), which were causing much distress to the public and enabled scalpers to evade paying taxes, but since no law strictly outlawed the practice, could not be legally fought prior to the new law. [30]
Sweden[edit]
Ticket resale by scalpers above face value is legal in Sweden regardless of limitations imposed by event organizer. [31][32]
United Kingdom[edit]
In the United Kingdom resale of football tickets is illegal under section 166 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 unless the resale is authorized by the organizer of the match. Secondary ticketing market StubHub have signed partnership agreements with Sunderland and Everton for 2012/13 season, whilst competitor Viagogo hold partnerships with Chelsea and other clubs.
Other than in the case of football tickets, there is no legal restriction against reselling tickets in the UK, although individual organisations (like Wimbledon) may prohibit it. [33][34]
In July 2016, several prominent music managers in the UK including Ian McAndrew, Harry Magee, Brian Message and Adam Tudhope came together to fund a new initiative called the FanFair Alliance, to work towards tackling the issue of ‘industrial-scale online ticket touting’. [35][36]
United States[edit]
A sign prohibiting tickets sales at any price
In the United States, ticket resale is a $5 billion industry. [37] Ticket resale on the premises of the event (including adjacent parking lots that are officially part of the facility) may be prohibited by law. These laws vary from state to state, and the majority of US states do not have laws in place to limit the value placed on the resale amount of event tickets or where and how these tickets should be sold. Ticket re-sellers may conduct business on nearby sidewalks, or advertise through newspaper ads or ticket brokers.
New York State law only permits prices above face value by the greater of $5 or 10%. [38]
Some US states and venues encourage a designated area for re-sellers to stand in, on, or near the premises, while other states and venues prohibit ticket resale altogether. Resale laws, policies, and practices are generally decided, practiced and governed at the local or even venue level in the US and such laws and or interpretations are not currently generalized at a national level. [citation needed]
Another issue in the US is that since ticketing laws vary by state, many ticket re-sellers use a loophole and sell their tickets outside of the state of an event. [39]
Selling tickets by ballot[edit]
Some promoters have ceased selling tickets in the traditional first-come-first-served manner, and require prospective ticket holders to enter a “ballot” — a competition with random winners — with the prize being the opportunity to purchase a small number of tickets. The ballots are intended to discourage re-selling by making it harder to purchase large numbers of tickets because being at the front of the queue does not guarantee the holder a ticket.
Events that have sold tickets by ballot include the Big Day Out in 2007, [40] the Ahmet Ertegün Tribute Concert – Led Zeppelin reunion concert at The O2 Arena in 2007 – and the 2006 Commonwealth Games. [41]
A similar practice used among ticket re-sellers is to list an item as an online auction (such as eBay) – most commonly an innocuous item such as a collector’s card – and give the tickets as a bonus to the winning bidder; thereby not actually selling tickets in order to circumvent ticket laws. This does not actually get around eBay’s selling rules, as they effectively state that the goods that the buyer receives are what the seller is selling, including any free bonuses.
Selling tickets at auction[edit]
Ticketmaster sells tickets in online auctions, which may bring the sale price of tickets closer to market prices. The New York Times reported that this could help the agency determine demand for a given event and more effectively compete with ticket re-sellers. [42]
Online auction sites like eBay only enforce state ticketing laws if either the buyer and/or seller resides in the state where the event is taking place. Otherwise, there is no resale limit for tickets.
Personalized tickets and other responses[edit]
Glastonbury Festival, which sold out 137, 500 tickets within less than two hours in 2007, [43] introduced a system in the same year whereby tickets included photographic ID of the original buyer, to enforce non-exchangeability. [44]
For tapings of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, tickets were free. However, identification of ticket holders is checked when entering and while standing in line, and most notably when progressing from the entrance queue into the studio space. These measures serve effectively as a means of preventing those reserving these sought-after tickets from selling them for a cash value upon reservation. [citation needed]
Some ticket sellers allow buyers to provide personal information in exchange for being allowed to buy tickets earlier. [45]
Other uses[edit]
Though scalping is most commonly associated with ticket sales, the process of buying desirable commodities and selling them off for a higher rate has proven lucrative with other items, particularly electronic devices such as cell phones, game consoles, and computer hardware. In some cases, internet resellers have developed automated bots to purchase bulk quantities of newly-released items on e-commerce websites as soon as they become available. Customers have argued that this generates an unfair advantage for the scalpers, adding to an already controversial practice, and many sites have begun implementing anti-bot measures to combat such tactics. [46]
See also[edit]
Ticket exchange
Price discrimination
Experience good
Internet ticket fraud
Tout
References[edit]
^ “THE TRUNK LINE WARFARE – WHAT THE RAILROAD PASSENGER AND TICKET AGENTS SAY. – View Article – ” (PDF). 13 July 1881.
^ “Ticketmaster Credit Card Entry – Information and FAQs. Official Ticketmaster Site”.. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
^ “Ticketmaster tries to cut out scalpers again”. 2009-09-17. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
^ “Miley Cyrus Fights Scalpers with Paperless Tickets”. Yahoo! Music. Yahoo!. Reuters. June 21, 2009. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2009. CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ “StubHub begins warning customers that some paperless ticket sales might be refunded”. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
^ “An underground community of ‘sneakerheads’ is using bots to corner the market on rare sneakers”. CNBC.
^ “Ticketmaster Sues Broker Over Use of ‘Bots’ to Buy Up Tickets”. Bloomberg.
^ “Congress Moves to Curb Ticket Scalping, Banning Bots Used Online”. New York Times.
^ “Ticket Buying Advice”.
^ Milicia, Joe (2008-01-19). “Ticketmaster’s near monopoly challenged as technology changes”. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ “, Inc. : Private Company Information – Businessweek”. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
^ White, Dominic (2008-07-14). “Murdoch aide joins Seatwave”. London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ Abelson, Jenn. “Sox snub StubHub, sign with Ace Ticket”.
^ TicketNews: Importance of Brokers. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
^ Doward, Jamie (2008-03-09). “How boom in rogue ticket websites fleeces Britons | Sport | The Observer”. London: Guardian. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ “Latest News – News – Olympics”. 2008-08-04. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ Barrett, Stephen (April 2, 2017). “Don’t Get Misled By Online Ticket Resellers”. Quackwatch. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
^ “New bid to stop Glastonbury touts”. BBC News. 2007-01-11. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ “Archived copy” (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-08-12. Retrieved 2011-10-04. CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ “Legislation”. Retrieved 2019-09-08.
^ “Stringent Quebec ticket resale law goes into effect”. Ticket News. Retrieved 2012-06-28.
^ “Ticket Speculation Act”. Government of Ontario. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
^ “Newsroom: Ontario Protecting Consumers in the Resale Ticket Market”.
^ “‘There’s a big problem’: Two-thirds of Tragically Hip tickets weren’t sold directly to fans”. CBC News, October 21, 2016.
^ “After Tragically Hip show outrage, Ontario moves on ‘scalper bots’”. The Globe and Mail, February 28, 2017.
^ Reilly, Gavan. “Anti-touting laws would just send business online – minister”.
^ “Anyone buying or selling tickets? “. Archived from the original on 2017-09-21. Retrieved 2016-05-18.
^ MacNamee, Garreth (16 September 2015). “Outrage as an official Ticketmaster website allows touts to sell U2 tickets at TREBLE the price”. irishmirror.
^ “Polish football official arrested for ticket-touting at Aviva”. The Irish Times. 30 March 2015.
^ “Israeli Knesset debate prior to enacting the 67th amendment to the Israeli Penal Code”. Israeli Knesset.
^ Svartbiljetter kan förbjudas, Sydsvenskan 7 September 2010
^ Koll på konsertbiljettsköpet?, Konsumentvärket, retrieved 18 June 2014 Archived 2016-10-21 at the Wayback Machine
^ “BBC NEWS – Entertainment – Q&A: Ticket touting”.
^
^ Savage, Mark (14 July 2016). “Bands urge action against ticket touts”. Retrieved 21 December 2016 – via
^ “About – FanFair Alliance”. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
^ Guzman, Zack (4 March 2015). “The surreptitious rise of the online scalper”. CNBC. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
^ Jules Polonetsky, Commissioner, NYC Dept. of Consumer Affairs (October 29, 1999). “Polonetsky Warns Ticket Scalpers”. The Jewish Press. p. 92. CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ “STATE v. CARDWELL – 246 Conn. 721 (1998) – “. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
^ “BIG DAY OUT 2010 – Music Festival – Auckland, Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth”. Archived from the original on February 3, 2009. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ “M2006 > Ticketing > About the Ticket Ballot and Special Ticket Offer”. Archived from the original on 2015-08-10. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
^ Ticketmaster Auction Will Let Highest Bidder Set Concert Prices in The New York Times. Retrieved February 24, 2007.
^ “Glastonbury tickets snapped up”. 2007-04-01. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
^ “Somerset – Glastonbury Festival – Glasto until 2010? “. BBC. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
^ Horowitz, Steven (2 May 2017). “The Concert Ticket Industry Is Still Broken”. Vulture. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
^ Bracken, Becky. “Scalper-Bots Shake Down Desperate PS5, Xbox Series X Shoppers”. threatpost. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
External links[edit]
Ticket Distribution Practices Archived 2008-03-31 at the Wayback Machine: New York Attorney General Report on Ticket Resell
Better Online Tickets Sales Act – Wikipedia
The Better Online Ticket Sales Act of 2016 (Pub. L. 114-274, S. 3183, commonly referred to as the BOTS Act) was signed into federal law by President Barack Obama on December 14, 2016. [1] This act was created to thwart attempts by individuals and organization to automate the process of purchasing tickets en masse using ticket bots. Later, these tickets are often resold on third-party sites for profit at a markup over face value, or at a loss. This activity is also referred to as ticket scalping. The BOTS Act outlawed the resale of tickets purchased using bot technology and set a fine of $16, 000 for violations of the act, which is enforced by the U. S. Federal Trade Commission.
Purpose of the act[edit]
The bill was first introduced in the U. House of Representatives (114th Congress) in February 2015 by U. Representatives Paul D. Tonko (D-N. Y. ) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn. ). The BOTS Act was created specifically to prohibit the circumvention of purchase control and ticket allocation measures used by Internet ticket sellers to ensure equitable consumer access to tickets for certain events. Ticketmaster recently sued Prestige Entertainment under the claim that Prestige used ticket bots to purchasing nearly 40% of tickets to the Broadway production of Hamilton and nearly half of all tickets to a Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao boxing match in 2015. [2] The bill was designed to penalize any party who are knowingly trying to circumvent a security measure, access control system, or another control measure of a ticket seller that is used by the ticket issuer to enforce event ticket purchasing limits or to maintain the integrity of online ticket purchasing order rules. If someone is found to have sold tickets violating the above intentions, that person can then be prosecuted.
This legislation empowers the Federal Trade Commission to act if they have reason to believe a violation of the BOTS act has occurred. States also have the right to form class action suits on behalf of multiple ticket holders.
What is a ticket bot? [edit]
A ticket bot is a software program that automates the process of searching for and buying tickets to events on ticket vendor platforms, such as Ticketmaster. Using bots, a broker can automate the process of searching for and buying tickets so that it happens in a flash, and conduct hundreds or even thousands of transactions at the same time. As explained by Consumer Reports, “Bots enable resellers to buy tickets in bulk by automatically completing online forms faster than a human can do by hand, submitting multiple entries at lightning speed, and bypassing authentication codes on websites intended to deter such software. ”[3]
Market analysis[edit]
A 2016 study by the New York Attorney General found that only 46% of tickets are ever made available to the general public while 54% are reserved for insiders and other specially delegated recipients (such as holders of special credit cards, to name one example). [4] This small supply created conditions where tickets resold after initial purchase was valued on average 49% above face value. In some instances, the report found, ticket prices on the secondary market were 1000% or higher above face value. This created a strong incentive for unscrupulous resellers to use bots to quickly buy as many tickets as possible to profit from the strong demand for a comparatively small number of tickets.
Commercial reaction[edit]
While the BOTS Act was a legislative act signed into law in the United States, it set into motion a variety of changes to how the online ticket resale market reported its ticket sourcing.
Notable changes include:
Google requiring secondary ticket resellers using its paid advertising platforms to disclose that they are not primary ticket sellers. StubHub, Viagogo, Seatwave, and others were in compliance with this as of February 2018. [5]
Congressional Budget Office report[edit]
According to a report by the Congressional Budget Office conducted specifically about the BOTS Act, the CBO estimated that increased costs related to monitoring and enforcing the new prohibitions established by the law would total less than $500, 000 per year. [6]
In addition, the CBO estimated that enacting the BOTS Act would increase federal revenues from civil penalties imposed to enforce the new prohibition; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. However, CBO estimated that those collections would be insignificant because of the small number of cases that the agency would probably pursue.
Existing state regulations[edit]
Prior to the passing of the BOTS Act, several U. states already had their own legislation which bans the use of scalping bots for the ticket resale market. They include the following:
California[7]
New York[8]
Oregon[9]
Pennsylvania[10]
Tennessee[11]
Ticket scalping by ticket bots has not only be regulated in the United States, as multiple foreign countries have adopted similar legislation. Ticket scalping is illegal for all or for some types of events in the United Kingdom, [12] Sweden, [13] Australia, [14] Israel and parts of Canada. [15]
References[edit]
^ “S. 3183 – BOTS Act of 2016”. 14 December 2016.
^ “Ticketmaster Sues Broker Over Use of ‘Bots’ to Buy Up Tickets”. 2 October 2017 – via
^ “Why Ticket Prices Are Going Through the Roof”.
^ “Obstructed View: What’s Blocking New Yorkers from Getting Tickets” (PDF).
^ “Google clamps down on ticket resale websites”. BBC. 7 February 2018.
^ “S. 3183, Better Online Ticket Sales Act of 2016”. 30 September 2016.
^ “2014 California Code:: Business and Professions Code – BPC:: DIVISION 8 – SPECIAL BUSINESS REGULATIONS:: CHAPTER 21 – Ticket Sellers:: 22505. 5”.
^ “New York Consolidated Laws, Arts and Cultural Affairs Law – ACA § 25. 24 – FindLaw”.
^ “ORS 646A. 115 – Software prohibited that interferes with sale of admission tickets to entertainment events – 2015 Oregon Revised Statutes”.
^ “§ 212. 1. Unlawful ticket purchasing software”.
^ “39-17-1104”.
^ DIGITAL ECONOMY BILL (PDF). United Kingdom Parliament Department for Culture, Media and Sport. 2017.
^ “Ticket touts to face unlimited fines”. BBC News. 11 March 2017 – via
^ Lieu, Johnny (20 October 2017). “Lawmakers try their hand at banning ticketing bots, but it’s not the end of them”.
^ “Ontario to tackle scalper bots, real estate rules in broad consumer protection bill”.
How to Scalp Tickets – wikiHow
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Scalping tickets refers to the advance purchase and resale of tickets once an event has sold out. Depending on the supply-and-demand for a given ticket, there is a lot of money to be potentially made in ticket scalping. It is illegal most places, you can easily fund your personal ticket purchases by learning the craft of scalping and selling a few tickets at each sold-out show you attend. [1]
1Use a proxy server. Ticket scalping is most likely illegal where you live. Although the chances of you being caught are slim, you should look into getting a proxy browser like Tor if you’re any bit worried. Proxies will block your IP address and make it difficult
2Buy tickets early. If you’re going to be using an online outlet to sell, you won’t be doing yourself any services if you wait to strike. Keep your eye out for presales and wide-release sale dates. The sooner you buy tickets, the better tickets you’ll have at your disposal. Better tickets will maximize the likelihood of being to sell them off to a potential customer.
3
Choose a suitable price. [2]
There is much debate as to how much a scalper should charge for an upmarked event ticket. Ultimately, it depends on the original price, quality of seat, and predicted demand for the ticket in question. Generally speaking, if a show has sold out, it becomes a seller’s market. Many professional scalpers tend to upmark resold tickets by 50%. [3]
Don’t forget to factor in service fees (including fees from the online marketplace) into your final price.
If your ticket price is way over the face value on personal ad sites like Craigslist, you run the risk of getting your post flagged. [4]
4Sell via an generic online marketplace. You can sell tickets online as you would anything else. Websites like eBay and Craigslist are known hangouts for online scalpers although the police are wise to that now. [5]
Both of these sites allow the resale of tickets, and you can do so without incurring the major fees of ticket sites like StubHub.
5
Use a ticket resale website. [6]
Ticket resale websites, colloquially called “fan-to-fan marketplaces”, have emerged specifically due to how much money there is to be made in ticket resale. Websites like StubHub will allow you to post your tickets in a trusted setting. [7]
These marketplaces are helpful because they’re relatively safe and the buyers on that site will be there specifically with what you’re selling in mind.
A ticket resale website also allows you to browse your scalping competition more conveniently. If you’re unsure how much you should mark up your ticket price, you can look up on what other scalpers are charging for the point of reference.
6Consider hidden fees. If you’re using an online marketplace like StubHub, you should keep in mind the fees you may incur. StubHub typically siphons 15% of your profits, plus a service charge. If you’re selling enough tickets and cutting enough of a profit margin, this shouldn’t be an issue. If you’re a more small-time scalper however, you may be better off with using a site like Craigslist or selling the tickets in person.
7
Track your profits. While scalping tickets in person tends to be a casual affair, purchasing and reselling tickets online for profit is more of a business than anything. Because the logistics are easier, you can think more about it in terms of supply-and-demand, market value and probability. With that in mind, keeping a spreadsheet of your profits and losses is essential for success in the long run.
If your tickets are selling fast, you may want to buy more tickets next time. On the other hand, if you’re not getting enough sales, you could lower your upmark a bit to attract customers.
Not everything will work the same for each category. Sports events may see different rates of success than an avant-garde metal concert. It may be a good idea to split your spreadsheet into different types of event. That way, you’ll be able to see where the most money is.
1
Determine whether a show will sell out. Especially if you’re selling a ticket in person, you need to make relatively sure that there will be a demand for the upmarked tickets you’re trying to sell. There is only a promise of demand if the event sells out. You can usually have a decent idea whether or not a show will sell out based on other shows that artist or team have put on. Look online to see if earlier events sold out.
Artists who charge the least for tickets are your best bet as a prospective scalper. [8]
It’s a good idea to look up on the artist performing as well, specifically their history for pricing. Some artists may charge as much as they can for tickets, while others will purposefully undercharge with the hopes of capitalizing on merchandise sales once their customers are inside the venue. [9]
2Aim to buy higher quality tickets. Unlike selling online, you are probably not going to be able to sell to a large amount of buyers while scalping in person. Realistically, a dedicated scalper may only sell to a few parties in one night, so it’s important to make those sales count with higher quality tickets. Buy your tickets early, and make sure the tickets themselves are part of a tier that’s bound to sell out fast.
3Get to the venue early. It doesn’t hurt to get to the venue early. After all, fans who are desperate to get tickets aren’t going to wait around to head over. For the highest demand events, you may have all of your tickets sold hours before the show starts. Getting to the venue will also give you a time to gain some selling momentum before the majority of ticket-holders show up and things begin to get chaotic.
4Make sure the buyers have the cash beforehand. Because of the illegality of scalping tickets, you won’t be able to go to the police if you’re cheated by a prospective buyer. Before handing anyone your tickets, make sure they actually have the cash to pay for it.
Be loud. You don’t exactly need to have a brilliant marketing scheme when it comes to scalping tickets, but you do need to make people aware that you’re selling them. Be loud, and shout what you’re selling. including the type and number of seats. You can repeat this information loudly. If there is a demand for what you’re selling, people will eventually come up to you and ask.
For example, if you were selling great tickets to a sold-out Dream Theater concert, you could say something like this: “Dream Theater, front row! Pair of tickets. ”
You don’t need to shout out the price as part of your repeated mantra. Some people who approach you may be more likely to accept a price once they’ve already opened a dialogue with you, as opposed to hearing a high price before approaching.
6
Make the exchange. Once the interested buyer has agreed to your price, its a simple matter of exchanging the tickets for the cash. The exchange itself should be fast and painless. There may be reason to be suspicious if the buyer is procrastinating or wasting time. In the vas majority of cases, buyers looking for scalped tickets are in a rush to get inside the venue, so an interaction shouldn’t take very long once the price has been agreed upon.
Don’t expect the buyer to show much in the way of gratitude. Scalpers are looked down on, and although they technically getting into a sold-out show because of you, the opportunism isn’t going to get you into anyone’s good graces.
Lower your prices if necessary. Like so many things in business, there is an element of financial risk in scalping tickets. Sometimes, a show will not sell out near as much as you thought you would. The tickets you are selling may not be quite as demanded as you had hoped for. If you’re having bad luck, don’t be afraid to lower your ticket prices. If there is no hope of selling them for a profit, you should cut your losses and sell the tickets at face value or below. It will be a defeat, but nowhere near as much as if you let the tickets go to complete waste.
On a brighter note, selling tickets at their face value is completely legal, so you won’t have to worry about infringing upon the law if it turns out you have to lower your prices. [10]
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How do I know when tickets start to sell?
Usually there are websites, often owned by the ticket providers themselves, that will list upcoming shows and the future ticket sale date. Ticketmaster is a good example.
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While turning a profit on scalped tickets is often illegal, it’s legal everywhere to sell a ticket at its face value. Of course, there is no use in doing this unless you bought tickets and can no longer use them. [11]
Some people have actually made entire careers out of the resale of tickets. [12]
You might make surprisingly good money off of this venture if you have a knack for scoping out the market.
Selling scalped tickets is illegal, you can’t get into much trouble buying them. Although the upmarked prices tend to make scalped tickets not worth it, you can go into buying them free of anxiety if you choose to do so. [13]
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Be cautious if you try to buy any scalped tickets yourself. Ticket fraud is very common, and while most scalpers are trying to make an honest dollar, there are some trying to swindle buyers.
Although it’s a victimless crime, the act of scalping tickets is illegal in most countries. If you choose to go through with the resale of tickets, you do so at your own risk. In some Canadian provinces, for example, you may incur a maximum $5000 fine if caught. [14]
Be aware of competition and the police. If it’s a high-priority event you are reselling for, it is unlikely you’re the only one tapping into the scalping market. Keep your eyes out for other scalpers. If you can, try to hear how much they’re selling their tickets for.
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Frequently Asked Questions about ticket scalper websites
Is online ticket scalping illegal?
The Better Online Ticket Sales Act of 2016 (Pub. … This activity is also referred to as ticket scalping. The BOTS Act outlawed the resale of tickets purchased using bot technology and set a fine of $16,000 for violations of the act, which is enforced by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
Where can I buy scalper tickets?
Websites like eBay and Craigslist are known hangouts for online scalpers although the police are wise to that now. Both of these sites allow the resale of tickets, and you can do so without incurring the major fees of ticket sites like StubHub. Use a ticket resale website.
Is it illegal to buy tickets from a scalper?
In the US, ticket scalping is the practice of buying and reselling event tickets by private citizens, rather than by the sponsoring venue or organization, usually at a much higher price than their face value. Laws about ticket scalping vary by state, and there is no federal law that prohibits the practice.