Ticket bots allow resellers to buy tickets very fast and before legitimate customers have a chance to purchase them. Brokers use the software to buy hundreds of tickets within seconds of them going on sale. These tickets range from sporting events to concerts and other types of events. After the brokers purchase the tickets, they increase the prices of them on sites such as StubHub.
In the past, the use of ticket bots have resulted in fines in New York. However, that didn’t do enough to curb the practice or cut into the profits of those using the bots.
Under the new law, using ticket bots will be considered a misdemeanor that is punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 or twice the suspect’s gain from a crime. They can also be sentenced to a year in jail.
The new legislation was signed by Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday. Gov. Cuomo said ticket bots drives up ticket prices for New Yorkers and visitors don’t have any choice but to pay unreasonably high prices.
Cuomo added that the practice is wrong and it’s predatory. He said the new law is an important step in restoring fairness in the multi-billion dollar industry. It seems that a number of social media users also agree.
Eric Schneirderman, NY’s State Attorney, said the new law will bring back sanity to the ticket buying process. In the past, Schneirderman said he would crack down on the use of tickets bots after he issued a deep report on ticket sale practices in the state. As a result of the report, sellers who had used bots to buy thousands of tickets settled with the state.
