Friday, January 20, 2012
Business Opinion: Ticketmaster's paperless tickets restrain trade
Posted by Max Brantley on Fri, Jan 20, 2012 at 7:09 AM
The writer argues that rules against giving or selling paperless tickets purchased through Ticketmaster amount to a restraint of trade in the secondary market. Some states have moved to stop the practice. Ticketmaster, and others who've imposed this rule, contends it is a bar to fraud.
Scalping is, of course, illegal in Arkansas. So the idea of reselling a ticket at a higher price is merely theoretical. (Tongue in cheek.)
Speaking of...
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No rehearing in Ticketmaster case
May 24, 2012The Arkansas Supreme Court today, without comment, declined to rehear its decision that Ticketmaster is subject to the anti-scalping law when it is exclusive agent for tickets as such venues as Verizon Arena. /more/
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Arkansas Supreme Court says Ticketmaster covered by scalping statute
April 19, 2012The Arkansas Supreme Court today ruled in a split decision that Ticketmaster is subject to the state's anti-scalping law when it is the exclusive agent for ticket sales at such venues as Verizon Arena. /more/
- More »
Comments (8)
Showing 1-8 of 8
Scalping in Arkansas is merely theoretical, as evidenced by the Razorback Foundation as well as Ticketmaster.
I have to laugh when the cops bust a couple of yahoos outside Razorback stadium for trying to sell tickets above face value, but turn a blind eye to the Razorback Foundation's request for a "donation" in order to secure a football ticket. That's almost as hypocritical as allowing alcohol in the sky boxes, but not by the unwashed masses in the stadium seats.
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I have never been a fan of Ticketmaster, but I applaud them for their paperless ticket initiative. It is beyond aggravating that so many athletic season tickets, concert tickets, etc. are sold to those who have zero interest in the event - but rather are only looking to profit. That leaves those of us who truly are fans either out in the cold or subject to gouging. "Secondary market" my arse!
Q: When should the free market be illegal in Arkansas?
A: When the free market cuts into Razorback revenues.
Of course it's a restraint of trade in the secondary market nearing abuse of monopoly power. Ticketmaster, a functional monopoly in the ticket market, owns a secondary ticket market, TicketsNow, which is the only place one can really place so called paperless tickets issued by Ticketmaster on the open market.
As for Fayetteville, the foundation doesn't care if you're scalping or not as long as they get their money so paper tickets will continue to roll out of there. Musicians/performance groups interested in fan experience are the ones concerned with scalping.
Once again, since we can't enforce the laws we have, let's create a new law that doesn't let me sell my tickets to the show I must miss due to granny's untimely death. Selling on the secondary market is not the problem. Cure the true problem.
Blah, blah, blah. "Granny's untimely death," "I was called into work," "My girlfriend got sick," etc. are all paper tigers. Sure, live happens. But this isn't about that. The resale market is about (1) greed, (2) greed, (3) greed, and (4) more greed.
I applaud any restriction on the "open market" that makes everyone think they can make a few quick bucks scalping tickets. Why should fans have to pay double or triple the face value of a ticket so that some greedy bastard can profit from?
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