SeatGeek is in damage control mode after a $500 off discount code was mistakenly leaked to the public for at least an hour. The code was shared to social media on Friday, with an undisclosed number of orders able to be placed using the codes “MLB1” or “MLB2” that enabled the huge discount. The company told Action Network that it was “unwinding” the damage and cancelling orders that used the leaked code.

“On Friday night, some fans made purchases on our site using an ineligible promo code that was wrongfully distributed without authorization,” said Cameron Papp, a representative for SeatGeek, in a statement. “Tickets acquired via these purchases are not valid and we are working to resolve each situation accordingly.”

Cancelling certain transactions should be simple enough for the company, which began as a ticket resale search engine but has increasingly moved into the “official” partner space. For tickets where SeatGeek is either the primary seller or an integrated partner, the sales can be cancelled and the tickets returned to the original seller who listed them. Transactions where the seller hadn’t yet transferred the ticket to the buyer should also be easily cancelled. Trouble will likely arise on transactions where the seller has already transferred the ticket to the buyer and SeatGeek has no ability to cancel that transfer.

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News of the code leak travelled quickly on the internet, where many appeared to have taken advantage of the momentary ability to score what amounted to free tickets that were valued at $500 or below, or $500 off a more expensive option.

Reddit users talked of snagging $500 off festival tickets, while some complained they got news of the code too late, after it had been deactivated. News of the code was also seen on Twitter.

Many who took advantage of the code and saw their purchases subsequently cancelled have complained over the decision by SeatGeek not to absorb the potentially enormous cost of the mistake. Also upset were those who saw tickets sold to consumers taking advantage of the code, only to see those orders cancelled.

It is unclear how many orders were placed using the code, or what percentage of orders saw completed and irreversible transfers of the tickets to the buyer.

Last Updated on May 16, 2023 by Dave Clark

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