Lawmaker fighting ticket freeze-out in name of Springsteen
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Tens of thousands of fans will crowd into MetLife Stadium three times over the next week to watch Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, some because they acted quickly enough to buy tickets at face value — and others because they were willing to pay more on the secondary market.
U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey has been seeking for seven years to solve the frustration shared by most people when they try to buy tickets to popular concerts, Broadway shows and sporting events through Ticketmaster.
Some brokers use illegal specialty software, called "ticket bots," to quickly purchase as many desirable tickets as possible for resale at significant markups, they said.
The report cited a single broker buying 1,012 tickets within one minute to a U2 concert at Madison Square Garden when they went on sale on Dec. 8, 2014, despite the vendor's claim of a four-ticket limit.
Regular concert fans also lose out when tickets are released to artist fan clubs or sold ahead of time to certain credit card holders.
The BOTS act would make the use of the computer hacking software an "unfair and deceptive practice" under the Federal Trade Commission Act.