The short answer is that in most cases, yes, it is illegal to use bots to buy concert tickets. While the specific laws vary by jurisdiction, the use of ticket bots is generally prohibited under anti-scalping laws or terms of service. Concert venues, artists, and ticketing platforms typically want to prevent ticket scalping to ensure fair access to tickets. Bots can buy up large quantities of tickets quickly, making it harder for regular fans to get seats.
What are ticket bots?
Ticket bots, also known as ticket scalping bots or ticket brokers, are software programs designed to quickly search for and buy tickets online. They are programmed to automatically purchase tickets the moment they go on sale, faster than any human buyer could. The tickets are then resold by the bot operators at marked-up prices to turn a profit.
Bots often get around limits on the number of tickets any single buyer can purchase by using multiple accounts and payment details. They also try to bypass captcha tests meant to confirm the buyer is human. This enables them to swiftly buy hundreds or thousands of the best seats before regular fans can get through online queues.
Are ticket bots illegal everywhere?
Many states in the US have passed anti-bot laws including New York, Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Virginia, Oregon, California, and North Carolina. There is also a federal Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act that bans their use for buying tickets to any event in the US or abroad.
Other countries like Canada, Ireland, Italy, Australia, Denmark, and Belgium have also enacted anti-bot legislation. So in most major concert markets, using bots to harvest tickets is illegal.
Why are ticket bots illegal?
There are a few key reasons why ticket bots have been outlawed:
- They make it harder for fans to buy tickets at face value
- They allow touts to resell tickets sometimes for more than 10 times their value
- They cost artists and promoters revenue from resales
- They go against terms of service on most ticketing platforms
Essentially, bots undermine the ticket buying experience and allow scalpers to profit off demand instead of regular concert goers. Enacting bot bans helps level the playing field.
What are the penalties for using ticket bots?
The penalties for using bots vary but can include:
- Criminal fines up to $100,000 in New York
- Up to 6 months jail time in Michigan
- Civil penalties of $1,000 – $5,000 per ticket in Oregon
- Seizure of profits from reselling tickets unlawfully in many states
- Up to 10 years imprisonment under the Federal BOTS Act
Venues and ticketing platforms can also impose sanctions like canceling all orders, denying entry, revoking membership, or banning users found to have used bots from future purchases.
What legal defenses are there?
Some key arguments a bot user might make in their defense include:
- They did not actually use a bot and manually bought the tickets
- The anti-bot law violates constitutional rights like free speech or equal protection
- The tickets were resold at fair market value, not substantially marked up
- The bot use was on a secondary resale site, not the primary seller
- They were unaware the tickets were originally bought using bots
However, these defenses have varying degrees of success depending on the specific circumstances and jurisdiction. The anti-bot laws are typically written quite broadly to prohibit bypassing ticket limits or subverting control measures on any ticketing platform.
Notable cases of ticket bots being illegal
Here are some notable cases of bot use leading to legal consequences:
- New York resident Kenneth Lowson fined $10 million in 2017 for using bots to buy over 1 million tickets.
- Chicago broker Wiseguy Tickets fined $120,000 in 2016 for using bots for over 200,000 ticket orders.
- UK’s Competition and Markets Authority fined reseller BZZ a record $1.9 million in 2018 for bot use.
- The FTC sued three major ticket brokers in 2017 for BOTS Act violations.
- WNY Tickets ordered to pay back $104,000 in 2021 for using bots to buy Buffalo Bills tickets.
These cases help set precedent and send a warning to other potential bot operators. The authorities want to show they are serious about cracking down on bot activities.
Kenneth Lowson Case
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Name | Kenneth Lowson |
| Location | New York |
| Year | 2017 |
| Offense | Used bots to buy over 1 million tickets |
| Penalty | $10 million fine |
BZZ Case
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Name | BZZ |
| Location | UK |
| Year | 2018 |
| Offense | Using bots to buy tickets in large volumes |
| Penalty | $1.9 million fine |
Conclusion
In summary, the use of ticket purchasing bots is illegal under most jurisdictions’ anti-scalping laws. There have been a number of high-profile cases targeting major ticket resellers using bots with large fines imposed. Defenses like claiming the tickets were bought manually or arguing the price was fair have limited success. Given the strict laws and willingness to prosecute, bots remain a high-risk way of trying to buy concert tickets.