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No hogging concert tickets online

Published (3/14/2008)
By Craig Green
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When tickets went on sale last year for the Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana “Best of Both Worlds” tour, parents who went online to get tickets shortly after the on-sale began found that the concerts were already sold out.

Tickets were subsequently resold on various Web sites for as much as 10 times the original price. This was all thanks to software that allows brokers to cut in front of everyone else in line and buy up seats.

Sponsored by Rep. Joe Atkins (DFL-Inver Grove Heights), HF2911 goes after the software and anyone using it. Approved by the House Public Safety and Civil Justice Committee March 11, it now goes to the House floor.

The bill would make it a gross misdemeanor to sell, distribute or use software to get around security and move to the front of an Internet ticket buyer line.

The bill does not affect last year’s law that repealed Minnesota ticket scalping statutes.

“It’s no different then if there are people camped out waiting for tickets and some big bully went by and elbowed everyone out of line, and bought up all the tickets,” Atkins said.

Rep. Chris DeLaForest (R-Andover), sponsor of last year’s ticket reselling legislation, asked Atkins if the bill would put additional responsibilities on law enforcement, already inundated with cybercrimes like identity theft. Atkins said that it was his understanding that this is still a rare occurrence and should not come up often.

A companion bill, SF3139, sponsored by Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-St. Louis Park), awaits action by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

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