New York Considers Extending The 2007 Law For Open Secondary Ticket Market
The secondary ticket market law allows for largely unrestricted ticket sales across the state. Why a law is needed to allow something to be done freely seems a bit odd, but that’s what it says. It’s kind of like having a law that allows people to breath unrestricted. Only when something is regulated are laws needed…unless of course the government thinks it’s job is to allow freedom and not protect it, but that’s a discussion for another time.
Among the key issues being discussed by the legislature are software programs designed to grab large blocks of tickets upon the start of a general sale and the lack of transferability of paperless tickets. Opinions vary greatly and nothing is likely to be decided in the near future on either matter, though there is a proposal being considered to ban the so called ticket “bots”.
Jason Berger from AllShows.com said in a TicketNews interview, “there are a few bad apples that have used bots, and that ruins it for everyone.” He was one of several New York brokers who lobbied for the restriction of “bots” from the purchase of tickets which may or may not be in the final legislation. He is also opposed to the current paperless ticket structure siting, “consumers think the issue of paperless ticketing means convenience, but in fact it’s quite the opposite because of the lack of transferability”.
Industry supporters are also rightly concerned, as should be the fan, as a paperless ticket market will create a monopoly. With TicketMaster entering in the secondary and paperless exchange market with subsidiary TicketsNow and partner site TicketWeb, one only needs to follow the money to see who will benefit from such a market. Hint: It isn’t the fans. Anytime the largest company of an industry, TicketMaster, supports regulatory legislation of said industry, you can be 100% assured they will either benefit from it, ie. stifle competition, or are covering up a scandal of massive proportions.
For more on paperless tickets, see this article.