A Bipartisan Defense of Fans

Nothing unites the right and the left like sports. We see this time and time again, but most recently with the joint letter from Senators Booker and Hatch to the FTC.

"We write to convey our concerns with certain recent practices in the ticket resale market and to request the FTC review the use of "white label" or "private label" marketing programs in the online ticket resale industry."

We've discussed this before, and are happy to see members from both parties actively taking a roll in protecting sports fans. Booker and Hatch's letter follows a just as scathing letter that Congressman Marino and Congresswoman Eshoo (D-CA 18) wrote in July calling out the shady practices of companies like TicketNetwork and their "white label" program.

To recap, "“White label” ticket resale websites use the ticket inventory and other technologies of larger ticket resale sites. They set their prices for tickets and impose fees and surcharges at their discretion, profiting from any markup. Both Vivid Seats and TicketNetwork operate expansive networks of white label sites.

These sites are a scourage for fans. They offer the same inventory as unique, giving the illusion of choice and dominating search engine results and advertising slots. They charge exorbitant costs with inflated ticket valuations and enormous fees, often hidden until a buyer’ enters their credit card info. And, they deceive fans into thinking they’re buying directly from a venue box office at face value, with misleading URLs, link titles, imagery, etc."

Thank you, Senators and Representatives, for protecting sports fans from ticket fraud.