The TICKET Act, one of several ticket-related bills under consideration at the federal level, has been passed by the United States House of Representatives by an overwhelming 388-to-24 margin. The bill, which mandates “all-in” ticket pricing as well as appropriate disclosures over so-called “speculative” ticket listings and a ban on “deceptive” websites, saw unanimous “yes” votes from house Democrats, and saw a 186 to 24 margin from Republicans.
It is the first ticket-related legislation to pass one of the houses of Congress in nearly a decade, though many have been filed. It would end the state-by-state hodgepodge of whether or not consumers are shown a true ticket price – including all fees – from the start of their transaction, a key pillar of the push to ban so-called “Junk fees” by the Biden Administration.
“We applaud the members of the House of Representatives for passing this consumer-friendly legislation,” says TicketNetwork Director of Government Affairs Bruce Morris. “Transparency on true ticket prices and better disclosures on the nature of a ticket listing are a step in the right direction for ticketing and will bring immediate improvements to the experience for consumers. We hope to see the Senate follow suit in passing this bill, sending it on to President Biden for his signature.”
Live Nation Entertainment – which has lobbied extensively for its own preferred legislation that would put significant new regulations on Ticketmaster’s competition within the resale space while simultaneously engaging in a last-ditch effort to avoid a federal antitrust lawsuit – put out a statement on Tuesday touting its “all-in” pricing track record.
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“Showing the total cost to walk in the door upfront is better for fans and artists,” said Michael Rapino, CEO of Live Nation Entertainment. “We’re proud to have led the industry in adapting this commonsense policy, and we encourage Congress to enact a nationwide law so every ticket buyer benefits from this transparency, no matter where they are buying their tickets,”
The Ticket Act was originally introduced by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in 2023, co-sponsored by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD). It was introduced in the House by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL). It has 17 co-sponsors in the lower chamber, along both sides of the aisle.
As passed by the House, the Transparency in Charges for Key Events Ticketing (TICKET) Act requires the following:
- Clear and conspicuous display of the total event ticket price in any advertisement, marketting, or price list wherever the ticket is offered for sale
- A total event ticket price that remains the same from the first time it is displayed through the end of the transaction
- Presentation of an itemized list of the base ticket price and each fee added to it before the completion of the transaction
Other areas of the law offer new regulations on so-called “speculative” tickets. It would end the practice of a marketplace allowing the listing tickets for sale that the seller does not yet possess entirely. However, it would allow for sellers to offer to acquire a ticket on behalf of the buyer at a later date – provided they make clear that the ticket is not actually in their possession (nor that they are marketed as a ticket). It would also require a marketplace to offer a consumer a full refund or comparable tickets in the event the seller cannot make good on such a listing.
It further adds new rules for disclosure on ticket sales websites – effectively setting out new guidelines designed to prevent resale websites intended to trick consumers into believing they are purchasing tickets through an official box office or venue site.
The full text of the legislation is available here: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/3950/text
Largely, the TICKET Act is seen by the industry as something of a compromise bill. It falls far short of the sweeping reform to both primary ticket marketplace issues and ticket resale issues brought forth in the BOSS and SWIFT Act. But it also doesn’t grant companies like Live Nation, AEG, and other industry insiders regulatory control of ticket resale in the fashion of the FANS First Act either.
We will update this story with any further official comment from the relevant stakeholders as they are released.
