Leadership / 12.01.21

How the Live Event Ticketing Industry Plans Its Regulatory Future

Access Staff

Forbes (11/29/21) Fuller, Eric

The recent Coalition For Ticket Fairness dinner included a talk by Sen. James Skoufis (D-N.Y.), who plans to shepherd a revised New York State live event ticketing bill. The legislation will likely consider mandatory refunds when requested for shows that are cancelled or postponed, and more publicly available data on whether an event is sold out or there are more tickets held back by the promoter for sale later. Of core importance to Skoufis is assuring that tickets remain transferable, guardrails against "drip" pricing and undisclosed ticket holdbacks, and enforcement of anti-bot programs. New York State has imposed licensing fees for ticket resellers, which are presently $5,000 annually, and which Skoufis wants to lower to a more affordable rate aligned with fees charged to other businesses which operate in the state. Skoufis holds a strong argument that New York's actions will influence other states' policies, and while it is the ideal state to test the ticketing measures he supports, tension between those who originally sold the tickets and intermediaries between sellers and end users may complicate the issue. Resolving this and other tensions entails open and honest discussion between all stakeholders.

Read the full story from Forbes. 

Tags: Regulations , News , Leadership