OPINION: In new policy on tickets for sports, concerts, etc., keep tickets ‘transferable’
New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is to be commended for engaging the difficult issue of ticketing for sporting events and concerts in his recent report “Why Can’t New Yorkers Get Tickets?” Schneiderman’s constant focus on consumer protection has brought real relief to New Yorkers in every region of our diverse state. He has forced positive changes in the business practices of industries as varied as banking, health care, financial services, pharmaceuticals and energy.
While we reasonably expect his office again to serve us well, there are concerns around ticketing that need and deserve a nuanced approach. A hammer in search of nails would be too akin to the steamrolling favored by an earlier occupant of his office.
Starting with easy and obvious areas of agreement: (a) more transparency is needed at every step of the ticketing and ticket resale market, and (b) there must be steps to prevent automated purchasing computer programs (known as “Bots”) from buying up vast blocs of tickets for immediate resale. Both issues involve the availability of tickets to consumers in the first, initial market.