News – Pressure on touts

Consumers believe there is no need for the Government to regulate secondary ticketing practices, but would appreciate more information about the costs of buying through agents and other third parties. Most people consider the right to transfer and/or sell on tickets on a small scale as being acceptable, but see the over-purchasing of tickets by using false identities as being unacceptable and unfair.
These and other findings relating to attitudes towards ticket touting were revealed in a research report published by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and considered at the fourth DCMS summit on ticket touting involving leading players in the ticketing market. Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said, We want to address the problems faced by fans  paying through the nose for a ticket with a poor view or handing over cash for a ticket that never existed& were going to continue to work with the industry to cut off the commercial opportunities for ticket touts and stamp out unfair practices. A new European law, The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, is set to come into force later this year and will ban unfair practices in the ticket market. It will require all ticket sellers to provide consumers with relevant information to enable buyers to make an informed choice.