Media Law Update: Government Rejects Tougher Ticketing Laws

• Published date: 13 June 2023
• Subject Matter: Consumer Protection, Consumer Trading & Unfair Trading, Dodd-Frank, Consumer Protection Act
• Law Firm: Herrington Carmichael
• Author: Ms Olivia Larkin and Mark Chapman

In May 2023, the government published its response to the Competition and Markets Authority's ("CMA") calls for further constraints on secondary ticketing sales. Whilst the overarching objective is to protect consumers from having to pay unfair premiums on tickets, it looks like the laws that govern ticketing sales will remain the same, for now...

At present, the government does not deem it necessary or justified to introduce further legislation in the secondary ticketing market. Instead, it has hinted to the enhanced enforcement powers that the CMA and other entities will receive under the recently introduced Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers ("DMCC") Bill. Whilst the DMCC Bill is presently still being debated within Parliament, the government has remarked that these powers should strengthen the enforcement of existing laws in the secondary ticketing market and therefore it does not presently feel that further laws are needed in this area.

The key rules relating to secondary ticketing can be found in the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and in Chapter 5, Part 3 of the Consumer Rights Act ("CRA") - the latter being applicable to both secondary ticketing facilities/platforms (to include the likes of eBay, StubHub, Ticketmaster and Viagogo) and to secondary ticket sellers selling tickets from secondary ticketing platforms/facilities (including individuals not acting in the course of business). Over the years, there have been concerns raised about the growing use of online secondary ticketing facilities, including:-

• Bulk-buying - where resellers bulk buy tickets as soon as they are released at their listed price by way of sophisticated software referred to as "bots" or "botnets", which then ultimately exhaust available tickets forcing consumers to pay higher than the face value of the ticket price due to this artificial influx of demand.
• No pass through of "profit" - meaning the profit made from the higher priced tickets sold by secondary sellers does not reach the organising bodies or artists.
• Subsequent contracting attempts by the primary ticket market - to manage the impact of bulk buying certain event organisers implement ticket sale terms that aim to restrict ticket resale or transfer. As a result, whilst there are some controls in the CRA in this area, there is...