Rolling Stone (02/18/20) Blistein, Jon

Pearl Jam submitted a letter to New Jersey Reps. Bill Pascrell (D) and Frank Pallone Jr. (D), asking that they revisit and reconcile certain aspects of legislation meant to crack down on ticket scalping. Pascrell and Pallone engineered the Better Oversight of Secondary Sales and Accountability in Concert Ticketing (BOSS) Act, which they reintroduced last year. The bill calls for more transparency to the ticket selling process and rules to punish scalpers, bots and resellers. Pearl Jam complained that the BOSS Act in its present form "primarily, if not entirely, benefits professional ticket resellers using the so-called 'secondary market.'" Specifically, the band said the bill's provisions to block non-transferable ticketing would remove barriers for scalpers to acquire tickets intended for fans. The BOSS Act also would require primary ticket sellers to report how many tickets are available to the general public a week before going on sale, and Pearl Jam said such information is more important to bulk purchasers than fans. It also would limit a band's ability to "create additional ticket opportunities," like opening up "obstructed view" seats.

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