AB 1349: Consumer protection: ticket sellers.

Existing law provides comprehensive regulation of ticket sellers, defined as a person who, for compensation, commission, or otherwise, sells admission tickets to a sporting, musical, theater, or any other entertainment event. In this regard, existing law, among other things, prohibits specified ticket selling practices and imposes certain recordkeeping and disclosure requirements. If an event is canceled, existing law requires that the ticket price be fully refunded to the consumer whether by an original seller, event presenter, ticket reseller, or ticket resale marketplace, as specified. If an event is postponed, rescheduled, or replaced with another event at the same date and time, existing law requires the ticket seller to fully refund the purchaser upon request, as provided. Existing law makes a violation of those provisions a misdemeanor, and imposes civil penalties for certain violations.

Existing unfair competition laws make various unfair competition practices unlawful, including any unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue, or misleading advertising. Existing law makes it unlawful for any person doing business in California and advertising to consumers in California to make any false or misleading advertising claim. Existing law makes a person who violates specified false advertising provisions liable for a civil penalty, as specified, and provides that a person who violates those false advertising provisions is guilty of a misdemeanor.

This bill would generally revise and recast the provisions regulating the sale of event tickets to impose similar requirements, as applicable, to original sellers, event presenters, ticket resellers, and ticket resale marketplaces, as defined.

This bill would prohibit a ticket seller from engaging in a speculative ticket sale, as defined. The bill would require that a ticket resale marketplace implement reasonable measures designed to prevent speculative ticket sales on its platform. The bill would make a violation of these provisions an unlawful business practice, as specified. The bill would make an original seller, ticket reseller, or ticket retail marketplace that violates particular law and fails to supply a ticket, as specified, civilly liable to the ticket purchaser for 2 times the contracted price of the ticket, in addition to any sum expended by the purchaser in nonrefundable expenses for attending or attempting to attend the event, and other fees and costs. The bill would, except as specified, prohibit an event presenter, venue operator, rights holder, original seller, or ticket seller from revoking, canceling, invalidating, denying admission, or rendering unusable a ticket based solely upon the lawful transfer or resale of that ticket.

This bill would make certain acts unlawful, including purchasing tickets in excess of posted limits for an online event ticket sale and circumventing or evading a ticket distribution control, as specified. The bill would also prohibit a person from using an internet website or address that is substantially similar to the internet website of an event presenter, venue operator, rights holder, original seller, or an authorized agent with intent to confuse or deceive consumers, as specified. The bill would make a violation of these provisions false or misleading advertising and an unlawful business practice. advertising. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

By expanding the scope of certain requirements related to selling those tickets, the violation of which is a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.