Springsteen-Inspired Scalper Law Is Good for Fans

Talk about “elevation”: Even before the latest batch of U2 tickets went on sale to the general public Monday, seats to the shows were being hawked on-line, topping $12,000 on Stub Hub.

New York Sen. Chuck Schumer is pushing a new law that would give fans two days to buy tickets before the legal scalpers start hawking them. Schumer’s move, inspired by the recent disaster where Bruce Springsteen fans reportedly were directed to a resale site minutes after tickets went on sale, will go a long way to restoring fairness to the entertainment game. 

But it may not go far enough.

It’s unclear whether the proposed bill will stop so-called pre-sales, in which repeat customers or fans who pay to join a “club” get first crack at tickets, via a password. The measure also doesn’t appear to regulate how many tickets promoters can hold back, and potentially hawk to brokers.

In the most recent U2 debacle, the pre-sale began March 31, six days before the general public got its first shot. Meanwhile, Ticketmaster began auctioning off top tickets on April 1. Even with U2 donating its share of those ticket sales to charity, the bidding system seems unjust to fans who only want a fair chance to see the foursome up close.

Schumer’s bill, if passed, undeniably will help folks without a ton of money or connections: ticket brokers will have to register with the feds, and they’ll be forbidden from “pre-listing” – advertising seats before they’ve gone on sale.

Ticketmaster is backing Schumer’s proposal. That’s not surprising: the company, whose proposed merger with Live Nation is on hold pending a federal Justice Department examination and investigations into the Springsteen mess, is desperate for some positive publicity.

But the merger, as its two most vocal opponents -- Schumer and Springsteen -- have noted, would hurt customers. The dual company would have a virtual monopoly on major live events – potentially meaning higher initial sale ticket prices, even before the brokers get in on the inflated game.

Two days is a nice head start – but it should be just the beginning in overhauling an industry that seems to benefit everyone but the fans.

Hester is founding director of the award-winning, multi-media NYCity News Service at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism. He is the former City Editor of the New York Daily News, where he started as a reporter in 1992.

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