Florida residents overwhelmingly support legislation aimed at requiring consumer choice from ticket sellers related to restrictive mobile-only ticketing systems. A survey of 500 Floridians showed that eight in ten support a law that would require companies offer tickets in a freely transferable format.
There are two bills progressing through the Florida legislature – Senate Bill 1316 and House Bill 969 – that would do just that.
“When Floridians buy tickets to see their favorite team or artist perform, they want the freedom and choice to do what they want with their purchased tickets,” says Gary Adler of the National Association of Ticket Brokers. “They do not think it is fair for a seller to lock their tickets into a proprietary system or app, and they overwhelmingly support a new law that protects their rights,”
The survey in question was commissioned by Protet Ticket Rights, and conducted by Google Surveys between January 30 and February 17, 2022 drawing from a representative sample of residents aged 18+.
Among its results, a number of notable trends were made clear:
- Nearly 9 in 10 oppose transferability restrictions, saying they paid for their tickets and should have the freedom and choice to do what they want with them
- 84% say it is unfair to lock digital tickets into a single company’s proprietary system or app (where ticketholders cannot easily transfer their tickets, to give them away or resell them however they wish)
- 84% believe that their entry should not be denied by cancelling or invalidating their tickets simple on the basis that they were purchased from an online ticket marketplace versus the box office or contracted ticketing company for the event organizer
- 82% support a new law that guarantees their rights to give away or resell their tickets however they wish (as proposed by Senate Bill 1316 and House Bill 969)
Those results are anything but ambiguous. The support for a free and open ticketing market is overwhelming, and the patience for consumers being forced into proprietary systems designed to limit consumer choice is minimal.
“Other states, including New York, Illinois, Colorado, Virginia, Connecticut, and Utah have implemented pro-transferability laws to protect consumers – and host some of the most popular markets for concerts in America,” says Protect Ticket Rights in a release announcing the results of the polling. “Opponents of transferability protections often claim that such laws will lead to organizers avoiding the state. Data shows this assertion is false. According to Pollstar’s 2022 Concert Market Ratings, three of the top ten concert markets – New York City, Chicago, and Denver, remain vibrant markets for concerts while also protecting consumer rights.”
The proposed ticket resale reform laws notably do not outlaw mobile-only ticketing systems entirely. They merely require that primary sellers give consumers a choice at the time of purchase to receive tickets in another format – one that doesn’t require the primary marketplace’s permission to use, give away, or resell the tickets. A similar law is under consideration in Georgia, but has not yet moved past the initial stage of consideration, while both Florida bill have advanced through their first committee.