Original article published on The Guardian (07/05/18) by Rob Davies

A new U.K. law will slap scalpers with unlimited fines for using bots to buy up multiple concert tickets for sale on the secondary market, although an expert warned that older ticket acquisition methods will remain in the scalper community's toolbox. Digital and creative industries minister Margot James stated that the ban on bots would boost efforts by artists to counter "unfair practices." Nevertheless, security and ticketing expert Reg Walker said some scalpers would be able to circumvent the law or fall back on tried-and-true alternative methods of obtaining multiple tickets. "There are changes in technology that mean there may be loopholes in the legislation that they can exploit," he cautioned. Walker said some scalpers were using modified Web browsers that perform the same task as bots but may be outside the law's purview. He also cited evidence that major scalpers in close relationships with ticket resale firms use multiple credit cards to bypass ticket-buying limits. Music Managers' Forum CEO Annabella Coldrick believes the ban would "help increase the chances of tickets getting into the hands of fans." Moreover, the Fan Fair Alliance argued that the law should be supplemented by "strong and swift enforcement" of existing regulations.

Read the full story on the The Guardian website.