I engage in conversations with fans about the legality and morality of ticket resale all the time, and they always boil down to a single question: Do you believe tickets you have purchased are your personal property, or do they remain the license and property of the event producer? By extension, should you be able to sell, give away, or otherwise transfer them in any manner and at any price you wish, or should you be restricted by the resale or transfer restrictions imposed by the licensor?
New, paperless ticketing technology is causing the topic of ticket resale to reemerge in state and federal lawmaking assemblies. For years, resale legislation was written primarily to protect event producers (for example, by implementing restrictions on reselling a ticket within a certain proximity to a venue). Now, however, it's finally being considered - rightly, we believe - as a property rights issue.
Fan Freedom Project is a consumer rights initiative designed to educate consumers and legislators about the importance of sustaining a free market with regard to ticket transferability. Its president, Jon Potter (bio
here), previously advocated for consumer-friendly digital media innovators such as iTunes and YouTube. Its website does a great job (especially
this page) elaborating on the frustrating scenarios caused by transferability limitations.
Ticketmaster also advocates for its position in the name of 'consumer-friendliness', claiming its technology prevents consumers from being victims of 'overpriced' or fraudulent tickets. But whether a ticket is 'properly' or 'over' priced is a term relative to the opinion of the buyer;
as I previously blogged, 40% of all ticket resale occurs below the ticket's original cost, so in those cases, restrictive resale policies would prevent you from getting a 'good deal'. As for fraudulent tickets, well, that can be an issue if you buy them on the street, but not if you buy them in a regulated resale market.
If you fall on the personal property side of the discussion and wish to support consumer rights, I encourage you to visit the Fan Freedom Project's
take action page. Join its mailing list, like it on Facebook, or write your legislator.
We understand that some event producers attempt to restrict ticket resale because they believe resale dollars should flow to the artist or team and because they want to know the end-user of a ticket. To argue, however, that third-party resale 'robs' the artist or team is counterintuitive to a free market system. Third-party ticket resale does not 'rob' artists and teams any more than the resale of your car 'robs' General Motors or the resale of your blue jeans at a consignment store 'robs' Levis. And it's fine if they want to create their own resale marketplaces so they may know the end-user; many have. But don't prohibit me from selling my tickets elsewhere if I choose.
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