Assembly committee advances bill to ban speculative ticketing on resale platforms

The California State Assembly Judiciary Committee on Wednesday voted to pass AB 13 49, advancing the bill, as amended, to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The bill would ban "speculative ticketing," require sellers on secondary marketplaces to own or have a contractual right to tickets before listing them, require platforms to disclose seat locations and keep records needed to issue refunds, and ban fake websites that impersonate official event sellers.

The bill's author, Assemblymember Bridal, told the committee AB 13 49 "prohibits speculative ticketing and requires ticket sellers to own, possess, or have a contractual right to sell the tickets before listing them." Bridal said the measure is intended to stop sellers from listing tickets they do not have — often at steep markups — and leaving fans without seats when events occur.

Supporters told the committee the bill is aimed at protecting consumers, artists and small venues. Julie Baker, chief executive officer of California Arts Advocates, said secondary platforms "are profiting from our…