is ticket scalping legal in pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General has entered into a settlement agreement, known as an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (AVC), with online ticket reseller Secure Ticket Purchase, LLC and John Urich, who sold tickets online through the website www.boxofficeticketsales.com for alleged violations of Pennsylvanias Unfair Trade Practice and Consumer Protection Law. Scalping in Pennsylvania is legal, as long as the seller doesn't collect $5 or 25 percent more than face value on the ticket, whichever is higher. [44], 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 mobile phones, video game consoles, and computer hardware. You should do some research into the event, and if possible, follow the organization's links to the authorized seller's webpage. The law makes it illegal to own, use or share bot software. 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. If I could, I would pay the artist directly, but no, I already have to give ticketmaster x amount in fees, and now some jerks purchase up the tickets I"m trying to buy and want to charge me triple the price! 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. Its all what people are willing to pay. 140 185D, North Carolina N.C. Gen. Stat. There are many ways that scalping can take place, such as: Lets look at scalping for various types of events and methods. Why is scalping made legal? @anon143266: It's actually not fair. Go to Cuba, where your ticket price will be regulated by the government. [43], For taping of Comedy Central's The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, tickets were free. Law, Government For instance, if an event is a popular event, a line of individuals will inevitably form. Essentially, this will mean that StubHub, Ticketmaster or other sites would have to set up shop somewhere in the state, a relatively easy proposition. Events that have sold tickets by ballot include the Big Day Out in 2007,[39] the Ahmet Ertegn Tribute Concert Led Zeppelin reunion concert at The O2 Arena in 2007, and the 2006 Commonwealth Games.[40]. Lets now think about creating a sliding scale tax for resellers based on the difference between the actual ticket price and resale price. Yes, they run the risk of not selling, but why should they care if they've sold their other tickets at a huge markup? And you think that the people who buy the tickets with no gaurantee of either being able to use the tickets or recouping their investment should subsidize your going. Online ticket brokering is the resale of tickets through a web-based ticket brokering service. DISCLAIMER. The artificially inflated ticket price results in an effective obstacle to many to attend an event as they could not afford it. So, dont cry about ticket costs when the law is now there if you yourself cannot go you, can sell them. In most of these states, scalping is considered a misdemeanor that may result in the offender getting a fine and up to one year in jail. 162, effective1/1 . As a result, consumers are not protected against the scalpers greed to take advantage of the consumer vulnerabilities that may not have paid a price that high in normal circumstances. New Jersey state law provides that tickets cannot be scalped or resold for an amount that is more than twenty percent or three dollars of the original ticket price, whichever of the options is greater when applied. Rhode Island state law prohibits the scalping of tickets for an amount that is either ten percent or three dollars more than the original ticket price, whichever of the two ends up costing an individual a greater amount to repurchase. One common concern with resale is with scam artists selling fake tickets to unsuspecting buyers. A: Scalping in California is not legal if: a) a person sells a ticket for admission to an event without the written permission of the owner or operator of the property where the event is. If you find ticket scalpers close to raceways and the NFL, you may likely see a higher level of enforcement by the police authorities and others, such as: Considering the level of supervision taking place at raceway games and the NFL, scalpers tend to stay away from such events or conduct their activities with a higher level of care. At 10 a.m., I was not able to get tickets. Tickets sold through secondary sources may be sold for less or more than their face . I couldn't buy tickets to a show I didn't know about. Some events have Ticket Transfer which allows the tickets to change ownership and allow for tickets to be transferred through Ticketmaster's proprietary systems. Ticket scalping has become a huge business; however, it is nearly impossible to account for the broad ef- While there are no federal laws against ticket scalping in the United States, many states have their own restrictions against the practice. Who said you had to wait till the last minute to get a ticket. But economically . Yes everybody wants to go see the Penguins in the playoffs for face value or see the Phillies clinch the NL east on the last day of the season for face value. If re-sellers buy the tickets and the tickets are not then sold out, then they risk a loss. --xtina. In recent years, fraudsters have started to use more complex methods by which they obtain tickets for resale on the secondary market. The state of New York has adopted a law known as the Arts and Cultural Affairs law, which prohibits the reselling of tickets for an amount that is ten percent or five dollars more than the original cost of the ticket. Login to add posts to your read later list, Event Ticketing Resources For Secondary and Primary, http://www.legis.state.pa.us/CFDOCS/Legis/PN/Public/btCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&sessYr=2007&sessInd=0&billBody=S&billTyp=B&billNbr=0086&pn=1250. In 2009, Ticketmaster started adoption of a "paperless" restricted ticketing, in which tickets could not be resold. 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". Whichever of these two amounts ends up being greater will be the one that is applied in such a scenario under this law in New York State. Since it was not clear how the preorder system worked, who was invited, and how you could place an order, scalpers were able to put their hands on the consoles and resell them at a higher price. A couple of days later, I sell the same tickets for $150 on StubHub. Its not just 100-200 tickets a game, but 2000-3000 tickets. So instead of complaining next year just buy a season ticket package and throw away the tickets you can not use, or you could be glad there are brokers that just ask you to pay for one or two events a year that you really want to go. What law did I break moron? What is ticket scalping? 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. Prior to Rendell, a Democrat, signing the bill, the State Senate unanimously approved the measure, which had been sponsored by Republican State Sen. Tommy Tomlinson. Pennsylvanians who purchased tickets before November 19, 2021 through, for a show that was canceled and has not yet received a monetary refund should contact the Office of Attorney Generals Bureau of Consumer Protection by filing a consumer complaint online at, www.attorneygeneral.gov/submit-a-complaint/consumer-complaint/, Send Drug and Child Predator Anonymous Tips, Community Drug Abuse Prevention Grant Program, ACRE Agriculture, Communities and Rural Environment, Pennsylvania State Coroners Education Board, Voters Rights in Effect at the Polling Places on Election Days. In New York, the Arts and Cultural Affairs Law prohibits the resale of tickets for more than $5 or 10% (whichever is greater) over the face price of the ticket. So if one game I eat the cost and one game I make a couple bucks, who cares, its not like Im buying just to sell, and who is to judge that, no one really knows why those tickets become available scalpers or season ticket holder that cannot attend. All the scalpers care about is to make a maximum profit at the expense of the fans. When ticket scalping laws are broken, consequences are often not enforced. Scalping of game consoles is not illegal in the United States. It was a preseason game and the Phillies organization treated it as such providing thoses fans with not as much as a token of appreciation for coming out to a meaningless preseason game. Ticket scalping is the act of buying tickets in an automated manner, using bots ( scalper bots) to later resell them for an increased price. In the other states, you may not have any state laws but you have a few states that regulate scalping at the municipal level. So if you are a scalper, you can sell your tickets without any legal consequences provided you are standing more than 200 feet from the entrance. 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 $3.35million to the New York Attorney General's Office just a year prior. No lawyer-client, advisory, fiduciary or other relationship is created by accessing or otherwise using the Lawyer.Zone's website or by communicating with Lawyer.Zone by way of e-mail or through our website. I can barely stand paying ticketmaster, so I am definitely not going to pay some stranger more than the actual artist who created the music I want to hear live! 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. Scalping is a nonviolent crime without a victim in fact, it is a crime where both parties are agreeable to the transaction. It is aimed at the instant mass acquisition of tickets to resell them at a higher price and generate a profit. I sell the rest.Enjoy your Cuban! I sold the tickets for $500 apiece, making back half of the money for my season tickets in one sale. Efforts to make the practice illegal are overshadowed by such websites. So, then what separates scalping from something like drop shipping? This is often possible if the reseller is a season ticket holder. In this case the law of supply & demand was tampered with so to speak. Thats why you will likely see scalpers outside of the stadium reselling tickets but rarely on the inside. Established re-sellers may operate within networks of ticket contacts, including season ticket holders, individual ticket re-sellers, and ticket brokers. 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. As such, there have been preorders for gaming consoles where all the consoles were sold within minutes. I am glad to have brokers. Real fans follow their teams or favorite artists, and know when the tickets go on sale. Im frustrated and wish we still had the protection of our government. Buying tickets from a scalper is riskier and more expensive than purchasing them from an authorized vendor. In fact, when the next generation gaming console (like the Xbox or Playstation) is scheduled to be released, they may be available only in limited quantities for preorder. - View Article - NYTimes.com", "Ticketmaster Credit Card Entry - Information and FAQs. I sell cars. Glastonbury Festival, which sold out 137,500 tickets within less than two hours in 2007,[42] introduced a system in the same year whereby tickets included photographic ID of the original buyer, to enforce non-exchangeability. Consumers With Tickets to Canceled Shows May Be Eligible for a Refund. Im not made of money, but I spend the funds for the season every year. If you enjoyed this article on Is Scalping Illegal, I recommend you look into the following legal terms and concepts. "[10] Ticketmaster launched fan to fan secondary ticket reselling site TicketExchange in November 2005. Tickets are limited, so snatching up tickets in essence limiting availability to others is criminal. Estate Thanks Ren dumb you know what I have been to at least one Pens game since Mario got stopped by Bill Ranford on a penalty shot in 1992. The book examines the general situation, public opinion and legal perception of scalping for four distinct periods: 1850-1899; 1900-1917; 1918-1949 and 1950-2005. On this blog, I provide you with golden nuggets of information about lawyers, attorneys, the law and legal theories. Secure previously guaranteed ticket buyers a full and immediate monetary refund for a canceled event. For example, there are seven states that require that you hold a specific license to legally buy and resell tickets, these states are: There are 16 states in the United States where there are restrictions on ticket sales above face-value, namely: There are four states where the laws governing the process of scalping are at the municipal level, such as in: Before we answer the question of whether scalping is legal or not, lets first understand what is meant by scalping. Attorney General Spokeswoman Barbara Petito said a lawsuit against the Ohio-based ticket scalping business Front Row Tickets Inc. claims the business illegally sold thousands of tickets for Pennsylvania events at $45 to $100 more than their face values. I'm wondering where this fits in this argument of ticket brokering being legal/illegal, etc. Ed, can you explain it to my son for me? The law labeled the ticket-seller most often Ticketmaster as the aggrieved party that must bring forward charges. Scalping bots, computer programs specially designed to purchase and resale items at inflated prices, have become common for tickets as well as other items sold online. For example, in Arizona, scalping is prohibited within 200 feet of the entrance of the venue. As such, a person who has been accused of illegally scalping or reselling tickets should speak to a local criminal defense lawyer immediately. For cutting of the human scalp, see, Svartbiljetter kan frbjudas, Sydsvenskan 7 September 2010, Koll p konsertbiljettskpet?, Konsumentvrket, retrieved 18 June 2014, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fight, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, "THE TRUNK LINE WARFARE - WHAT THE RAILROAD PASSENGER AND TICKET AGENTS SAY. The new law removes the cap and requires that the reseller guarantee a full refund if the event is cancelled or the ticket is not valid upon entry. NEVER. Mailing Address: Generally speaking, however, states that do consider ticket scalping to be illegal will issue fines for up to $1,000 and/or a jail sentence for no longer than one year if the scalper is a first-time offender. Please provide a valid Zip Code or City and choose a category, Please select a city from the list and choose a category. If convicted, it will appear as a misdemeanor on an offenders criminal record. Section 518.070 - Ticket scalping (1) A person is guilty of ticket scalping when he intentionally sells or offers to sell a ticket to an event at a price greater than that charged at the place of admission or printed on the ticket, unless authorized by the issuer or by law. 4-318, Massachusetts Mass. I paid about 2000 for two season tickets, but ended up seeing most of the games for much cheaper. 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. I agree that there should be a cap on the price tickets are allowed to resell for. There are no federal laws prohibiting scalping in the United States. Scalping in its modern iteration, also known as bulk or automated buying, is a threat to eCommerce and ticketing websites selling sought-after products and services. Efforts to clamp down on ticket resale have included labeling tickets with the name or a photograph of the buyer,[16] and banning people without tickets from the vicinity of the event to prevent the purchase of secondary market tickets. There are no federal laws prohibiting scalping but there are 16 states where scalping is considered illegal. Enjoy! Scalpers can obtain tickets in a variety of ways, including purchasing them straight from the box office, online, or from those who already own them. [27], In Israel, in 2002, The Knesset put into effect the 67th amendment to the Israeli Penal Code, enacting Section 194a, which outlaws ticket scalping. As a result, many fans who may already have a hard time buying tickets at face value may not be able to buy tickets through a scalper. I have shown up late to concerts and been able to get in for less than half price by buying tickets form a scalper who bought too many tickets. (this may not be the same place you live), Faulty/Defective Products/Services (Auto, Drug), Investments (Annuities, Securities, IPOs), Online Law Many hazards are linked with purchasing scalped tickets, including the possibility of purchasing counterfeit or invalid tickets, paying inflated rates, and being defrauded by dishonest scalpers. It's not till next month, but now there is only one seat left. Hello Nation! In May, a district court denied. Such is life. If someone else has reference to it please provide a link (I will if I find it). I wonder if this law limits the actions teams can take against season ticket holders, etc. Ticket scalping, also known as ticket brokering, refers to the act of reselling tickets for an art, cultural, music, or sporting event at a price that is higher than the original face value of a ticket. Reacting to complaints of aggressive scalpers on the North Shore after the stadiums opened a decade ago, the city implemented licensing requirements, scrapped them, and then reinstituted them. What should would-be buyers know to protect themselves when purchasing tickets online or from secondary sources? Obviously, the system is flawed. Some brokers host their own websites and interact directly with customers. What most people dont understand is the best way to get the important tickets is to invest in a season package. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. If you did that and just sold off the other tickets at face value to friend ( or actually use them) you would have gotten them for face value. But there is an argument that ticket scalping actually enhances the total welfare of concert goers and sports fans. 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.[41]. Would the rules be different if I did this regularly versus infrequently (making two to five transactions a week versus two to five transactions a month, would the rules that apply be different)? Present 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. What most of you dont want to commit to is the other 13 Sunday games that come in a season pkg for the Phillies. We missed only one home opener in all of those years, the year the Bank opened in 2004. who resell their tickets, the way the NY law does? See, if you are knowledgable of what goes on in our society regarding tickets to events, there are companies like RazorGator and many others who profit by buying as much as possible to an event leaving less or no tickets for a casual individual buyer. As with crime in general, police officers handle the offense according to severity. When theres a limited number of seats and a high level of demand, scalpers can expect to make a good amount of profit by reselling the tickets. Is Amazon actually giving you a competitive price? Yeah, everyone should be able to pay a reasonable price. I can buy almost anything for someone else, whether I know him or her or not, so why not tickets to an event? A scalper will generally buy as many tickets as they can, and then sell them to others at an inflated price. 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. ".. crime without a victim in fact, it is a crime where both parties are agreeable to the transaction" is incorrect. You can almost argue that the clients consent was vitiated to a certain extent as they purchased based on emotions and they would not have the ability to get a refund or return the tickets if they realized that they made a mistake. They get together, negotiate a deal, and everyone walks away with what they want. In response to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, most, if not all, concerts and events in Pennsylvania were canceled due to safety concerns. In other words, if someone were to buy tickets at face value and sell them at a higher price, they may not be in violation of specific laws regulating the event. In the United States, ticket resale is a $5billion industry. Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell late Friday signed into law a bill that allows anyone to legally resell event tickets online. This is caused by a number of factors. If the official website for the event sells out, these sites promote themselves as a second chance. Using the internet, scalpers are able to disguise themselves as more reputable ticket sellers, which can cause confusion for anyone trying to buy tickets. An hour later, the event was declared sold out. BTW you could go online at the beginning of the year and buy up tickets and if that team dont make it to the finals your going to be out a lot of money. For instance, some states like Texas have no restrictions on ticket scalping, while others like New York and New Jersey, impose strict limitations and penalties on those who are found guilty of illegally scalping tickets. One example is a company called TicketReserve, which is making money by selling "options" on future sporting events. The individual buyer and seller may agree, but the competitors in obtaining an originally affordable price may be the victim. Additionally, the statute defines the word person as a natural person or a corporation. Reg. 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. This little known plugin reveals the answer. I'm sure it's because of scalpers, because I found some selling seats on ebay. 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. An experienced criminal defense lawyer can inform you of your legal rights and options, as well as can determine whether you have any defenses. This is so with Ticketek tickets (Ticketek is an Australian-based ticketing company). The European Council will need to adopt the Annex formally, and member states will be given approximately two years to transpose the amendments into national law. I have to further the disgust on this issue since I was not able to get online today to try to get on of the few tickets available for the Pens next home playoff game coming up on Sunday. However, even with anti-scalping laws, scalping activities tend to take place in person, online, and for major events. Even though individuals may be located in a state where scalping is illegal, the websites remain operational nonetheless. The topic of ticket scalping remains somewhat controversial. For many major sporting events, counterfeit tickets are auctioned off in the months leading up to the event. These cannot be later resold or transferred via ticket exchanges such as StubHub.[5]. Typically, private resale will contravene the original conditions of sale, but it is 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. , for violations, including a change of policy that eliminated refunds for canceled events. I was able to live like the wealthy, eating at the premium buffets, extra wide seats, full bars with lounges and player meet and greets, all for less than the price of a pair of cheap seats for the season. If you dont or cant pay the price then dont go. He did what others would not do. It actually helped me realize something, which would likely be seen as a secondary argument in favor of deeming it illegal: although it operates on foundational principles rooted in capitalism and all is fair in love and war. Persons who are caught doing so can face considerable legal penalties. In addition, some state laws require that a scalper register with their state as a ticket broker and pay a registration fee. They state that it creates a fair, open market that both parties are agreeable toward. It is simply supply and demand. Scalping tickets is illegal in many areas due to the fact that is unethical and can be harmful to the success of an event. The state of Washington has anti-scalping laws that restrict the resale of tickets for more than the original cost of the ticket plus ten percent. What if a scalper buys up a whole section at once? If you must purchase tickets from a third party, pick a safe and reputable platform like Ticketmaster or StubHub, which offer buyer protections and ensure ticket authenticity. [22] As a result, in 2017, Ontario announced legislation to attempt to crack down on scalper bots.

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