Matheson & Terry Introduce Ticket Competition Bill
WASHINGTON- Congressman Lee Terry (R-NE) and Congressman Jim Matheson (D-UT) have introduced legislation to provide open and meaningful competition for consumers. The Ticket Act of 2010 protects consumer access to the most competitive and open segment of the event ticket market, the secondary market for buying and selling tickets.
“Consumers are losing the ability to transfer tickets that they purchased in a legal way,” said Congressman Matheson. “The system is being rigged against the individual fan when it comes to the secondary market, and this bill tries to address that problem.”
“Too many times the average person is shut out of concerts and sporting events because the limitation of tickets available and the lack of a secondary market to access them,” said Congressman Lee Terry. “For one major company to have the monopoly on ticket sales and resale is unfair to the consumer.”
Facts about the Ticket Act of 2010:
* This legislation allows access to open and competitive secondary ticket markets.
* Protects ticket purchasers from harmful legal action by ticket issuers that threaten legal action against them.
* Requires ticket sellers, both in the initial primary market and the secondary resale market to offer basic consumer protections which will include full refunds (including fees charged to the purchaser) if the event or ticket is cancelled or if the seat location or similar feature have been materially misrepresented.
* The provisions of this legislation apply to nearly all ticketed events in venues seating more than 1000 persons that affect interstate commerce (with exceptions for free charity events and distribution of game tickets to high school or college students, booster clubs, and the like)
* This legislation covers all methods of ticket distribution, including electronic or virtual ticketing systems.
* The requirements would apply to venue operators, event promoters, sports teams and leagues, and their agents, including all major sources of event tickets in the primary market.
* This legislation does not pre-empt State and local scalping laws and other prerogatives.
