Insanely inflated ticket prices for gigs are soon to be a thing of the past in NSW, thanks to a new reform that will see scalping bots banned across the state.
A new reform to the NSW Fair Trading Act will see ticket scalping bots a thing of the past when new legislation is passed this week.
As reported by the ABC, a reform to the NSW Fair Trading Act will outlaw the software that circumvents ticketing website protections, allowing scalpers to buy loads of tickets and re-sell them on resale websites for far more than the original price.
Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation, Matt Kean, says of the reform, “What we’re seeing is ticket bot technology being used to sweep up tickets and deprive genuine fans of getting access to the concerts and sporting events that they want to see.”
“It’s time that genuine fans got a fair go and were able to access tickets at a reasonable price.”
“I’m sick and tired of consumers being ripped off by shonky operators trying to make a quick buck at the expense of genuine fans.”
Tim Godfrey, a spokesperson for the consumer group Choice, has welcomed the move, saying the bots have been causing havoc in the ticket market for many years.
“Obviously the major football codes get targeted for their big games but it’s the headline acts that tour Australia that [sic] be it Adele, Justin Bieber, Ed Sheeran, you name it,” he said.
“If they’re a big name and there’s a lot of competition for tickets, then these scalpers get in on the action and they want to charge massive mark ups.”
According to the ABC, the legislation will be introduced this week.
