California Assembly Vote Stifles Key Area of Proposed Ticket Bill

An Assembly Committee hearing in California on Tuesday heavily crippled Assembly Bill 329 introduced by Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, that would have banned paperless tickets and has been opposed by IAVM, Live Nation, and venues and artists throughout the industry.

Following fierce opposition from committee members, the bill underwent a major amendment with the new version of the bill penalizing the use of the software some scalpers use to buy tickets before fans have the opportunity to do so. The bill was stripped of the provision to make it a misdemeanor for ticketing companies to use restrictive tickets that are non-transferable.

The preservation of paperless tickets means that only the purchaser may redeem the ticket and that transaction can only take place at the venue, something the scalping fraternity fought.

The preservation of paperless tickets means that only the purchaser may redeem the ticket and that transaction can only take place at the venue, something the scalping fraternity fought.

The preliminary vote in California must still be approved by the full California legislature and the governor. Similar battles have been waged in other states including Minnesota, Texas, Tennessee and Florida, and a proposed ban on paperless ticketing is picking up steam in New Jersey but has not yet been written into law.

IAVM President/CEO Vicki Hawarden, CMP, was among those who wrote to Assemblyman Pan voicing disapproval of AB 329. “IAVM supports the use of fan-friendly ticketing measures as a means to ensure that California fans can purchase tickets at the original cost so they can afford to come back to our members’ venues again and again,” she wrote. “We are standing together with dozens of performers, teams and venues in opposition to this legislation. I ask that you choose the interests of California fans over nationwide ticket scalpers and oppose AB 329.”