UK takes another step towards criminalising tickets bots – is NSW next?

While the Australian Government refuses to deal with criminalising use of bots software by scalpers, the UK Government has this week taken a step forward.

UK Culture Minister Matt Hancock this week signed the commencement order for the Digital Economy Bill.

This gives the Government the go-ahead to pass a law which makes it a crime for scalpers to use bots to purchase more than the set maximum amount of tickets by event promoters, and makes them susceptible to huge fines.

The new law, said to be introduced in April 2018, also forces scalpers to provide to buyers the original ticket price, as well as a ticket reference and booking number so they know which seat they’re getting.

“We are criminalising misuse of bots by ticket touts to stop sale of tickets at inflated prices,” Minister Hancock announced on Twitter.

We are criminalising misuse of bots by ticket touts to stop sale of tickets at inflated prices. #DigitalEconomyAct (4/5)

— Matt Hancock (@MattHancock) July 17, 2017

In Australia the upcominground of superstar tours has seen an escalation of ticket scalping activity. Paul McCartney tickets are going for up to $1750, while those for Ed Sheeran and Katy Perry are between $200 to $130 above face value.

As a result, NSW Fair Trading Minister Matt Keanannounced he intends to introduce measures to ban bots in the state.

“We want to put an end to this practice which sweep up tickets and gouge customers,” he said in a TV interview which he posted on his website.

So far the Minister is not giving away too much about the changes to law. But it is expected that it will cap resale prices at 10% of face value and, like Queensland, introduce fines of $2500 per infringement.

A previous NSW Government proposed in 2014 to curb resales. But it was dropped after a parliamentary committee warned it would increase ticket prices.

Minister Kean’s moves saw independent Senator Nick Xenophon repeat his view that any effective moves had to come on a Federal level.

In March the Senator was successful in getting the Senate to pass a motion that laws had to be introduced to outlaw bots but the Government defeated it in the House of Representatives. Labor has raised the issue againsince.

Meanwhile in the UK, the music industry reacted enthusiastically about the latest anti-bot moves in that country.

Trade umbrella body UK Music’s Chief Executive Michael Dugher said: “UK Music is pleased that the Government is responding to calls for action from the music industry.”

The use of ‘bots’ to bulk-buy tickets amounts to industrial-scale touting (scalping) and deprives fans of the chance to see their favourite acts.

“Huge profits are made by unscrupulous people who are deliberately ripping off fans and putting tickets out of their reach.

“Banning bots is a step towards ensuring the ticketing market for live events works more fairly for gig-goers.”

The music industry’s anti-scalping group FanFair Alliancewelcomed the latest step.

But it has emphasised in the past that “[c]riminalising the bulk-buying of tickets through specialised software should be a significant deterrent to some touts.

“However, it is not a complete solution. The priority to properly clean up this runaway market remains the proper enforcement of Consumer Law, and action against the Big Four resale sites when they fail to comply with it.”

The Government has already confirmed funding for National Trading Standards to undertake enforcement action, to make the new law effective.

As reported in TMN,FanFair Alliance recently did a survey of 100 toursthrough the UK and concluded that the major resale platforms were paying search engines to put them on top of the list when punters googled tours.

TMN has also reportedthat of the 1 million tickets sold for Ed Sheeran’s dates next year, 10,000 were cancelled because they were bought illegally by scalpers.

These tickets have now been returned to the marketplace to be bought through proper channels.

The Bill was backed by Parliament earlier this year and given Royal Assent in April.

Aside from taking aim at scalpers, it also forces UK-based online porn sites to install age verification software so that it is not accessed by viewers under the age of 18, and for catch-up TV and on-demand services to provide subtitles and audio descriptions on their programmes for people with hearing or sight impairments.