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NITO files ticket reseller complaint with US Federal Trade Commission

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The National Independent Talent Organisation (NITO) has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission in the US, alleging potential widespread violations by the ticket resale industry.

The trade association has claimed in a letter that some resellers have violated the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act of 2016, which was also shared with members of Congress, other Federal and State entities, and the trade group’s partners in Fix The Tix Coalition. 

Addressed to chair Lina Khan, who is commissioner of the US Federal Trade Commission, the letter read: “The National Independent Talent Organisation (NITO) requests that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigate the widespread sale of technology used to violate the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act.

“Our organisation recently attended the World Ticket Conference organised by the National Association of Ticket Brokers (NATB). At this event, we observed a sold-out exhibition hall filled with vendors selling and marketing products designed to bypass security measures for ticket purchases, in direct violation of the BOTS Act.

“Artists, promoters, venues, and primary ticketing systems set ticket purchase limits to increase accessibility and protect fans from large-scale resale for profit, especially for high-demand concerts. The BOTS Act aims to prevent the use of technology that circumvents these ticket purchase restrictions and to protect consumers from price gouging on the secondary market. However, despite these efforts, purchase limits are routinely bypassed.”

The event was held in Nashville in July, with NITO claiming it witnessed evidence of tools being provided to enable scalpers to circumvent ticket purchasing limits. The tools included sophisticated browser extensions, proxy services and virtual credit card platforms designed to bypass security measures implemented by primary retailers. 

The letter was signed by NITO president Jack Randall and managing director Nathaniel Marro, as well as 42 member companies. 

NITO has also offered some recommendations to rectify the issues. The trade organisation argued that the Federal Trade Commission could subpoena customer lists from companies offering services that fall into the categories likely to facilitate BOTS Act violations. Additionally, NITO suggested the Federal Trade Commission work closely with major ticketing platforms to identify behaviour patterns around BOTS Act violations.