Vermont Implements Ticket Resale Price Cap Under New Law

Stowe, Vermont. Photo Credit: Jeffrey Clayton

Vermont has officially become the latest state to take a stab at decommissioning scalpers, as it’s enacted a ticketing-reform law featuring a resale price cap, a ban on speculative passes, and more.

Governor Phil Scott signed the bill into law yesterday, and multiple reform-minded organizations reached out with statements applauding the development.

Spanning about four pages and set to go into effect on July 1st, the straightforward law will, at the top level, require those who issue event tickets to “include on the face of a ticket in a clear and conspicuous manner the total price of the original ticket.”

Next, secondary marketplaces must inform customers, on a listing-by-listing basis, whether they’re buying “from a ticket issuer or a reseller.”

However, notification or not, prospective purchasers shouldn’t have a difficult time determining as much – at least when it comes to shows at indie venues with 3,000 or fewer seats.

For these events, the law prohibits one from selling “a ticket at a price greater than 110 percent of the price of an original ticket.”

Resale platforms themselves will be subject (once again when total capacity is less than 3,000) to the same cap – “[a] secondary ticket exchange shall not authorize for resale on the exchange a ticket for a price at greater than 110 percent of the price of an original ticket,” according to the law.

To state the obvious, while the price ceiling is perhaps good news for fans who are eager to secure passes to some high-demand concerts, it won’t provide relief for diehards who are looking to attend ultra-popular stadium shows.

Regarding the use of “perhaps,” the cap doesn’t “apply to the resale of a ticket under a written contract with the ticket issuer” – whether a venue, an artist, a promoter, or a different party.

This seemingly means that said issuers can lawfully facilitate the resale of tickets at north of 110% of face value if so inclined.

Back to the law’s across-the-board requirements, resale sites’ ticket-availability information – referring in part to the displayed percentage of remaining passes – “shall not mislead customers about the availability of tickets on that platform or on other platforms.”

Additionally, resellers and secondary platforms cannot “use deceptive website addresses” or imply (like with logos and images) that they’re associated with particular artists or venues. Nor can they use the word “official” to suggest an association with artists, venues, or teams.

(Of course, the exception here is “express written consent” – i.e., actual permission to use protected imagery, official billing, etc.)

Finally, returning to the initially mentioned speculative tickets – tickets listed for sale before they’re in one’s possession, that is – “[a] person shall not sell or offer for sale speculative tickets.”

In a statement, National Independent Talent Organization (NITO) executive director Nathaniel Marro touted Vermont’s resale law as “another win” for artists and fans.

“Ticket buyers now have protection against the most predatory practices and know they’re not competing against bots and brokers for the best seats,” Marro continued. “Momentum continues to build across the nation to keep resale in check and we thank all the artists and advocates who lent their voice in getting this passed.”

As for how the law fits into the bigger ticketing-reform picture, Vermont isn’t alone in attempting to curb scalping. Nearby Maine last year implemented a law of its own, and at the federal level, BOTS Act litigation is ongoing against alleged ticket resellers as well as Live Nation and Ticketmaster.