Stubhub complains after Ontario officially bans ticket bots
If you've ever been floored by how quickly marquee concert tickets seem to sell out and what they end up costing on resale sites, the Ontario government now has your back. But today's passing of the Ticket Sales Act has online ticket retailer Stubhub seeing red.
The legislation is good news for event-goers who have been slighted by ticket re-sellers setting astronomically high prices, as it seeks to regulate online ticket sales and ensure they can be purchased at a fair value.
Stubhub, however, feels differently.
The company issued an open letter saying that while it supports the driving idea behind the new legislation, it's not happy with the price caps that will now be imposed on resell tickets.
I am SHOCKED that @StubHub and other enablers of scalpers are upset that there's a cap on markup. Very. I would say this is the most shocking news I heard all year. Indubitably.
— ⛓AstroCreepXL⛓ (@CreepyXL) December 13, 2017
I'd say decrease cap to 10% over face value. Stubhub need not be greedy anymore. $400 tix? Ha!
"When it comes to price caps, StubHub joins the industry in opposing this measure," reads the release.
"Consumers benefit from a competitive ticket market where transactions occur through secure channels that prioritize fans. At the same time, it is important to incentivize and encourage this e-commerce to remain right here, in Ontario."
The regulations cap the sometimes outrageous ticket prices listed by re-sellers who use the platform by ensuring that they aren't sold for more than 50 per cent above face value.
Anyone who scalps or fux wit bass u ain't my fran. I'm about max access & inclusive community - do not sell my tickets above face value. 👹👺👽
— Bassnectar (@bassnectar) October 8, 2014
Stubhub's opposing argument goes like this. "If the established market rate exceeds the 50% cap established by government, those sales won't stop or adapt to reflect the price caps – they'll just occur at their true value through channels the government cannot regulate."
In addition to price caps, the new rules also ban tickets from being purchased automatically by bots and potentially scalped later on. Instead purchases must be made manually with key information provided by the buyer.
Earlier this year, the government initiated a public survey to generate feedback on ticket-purchasing experiences and factors like access, affordability, transparency, and enforcement surrounding online ticket sales.
— Daniel Caesar (@DanielCaesar) November 1, 2017
Stubhub also criticizes the new regulations for not ensuring enough transparency in terms how many tickets are made available to the general public for large scale events, but if social media reaction is any indication, people aren't buying the company's take right now.
