Ticket sites sue over a 10% resale cap as D.C. calls markups a 'scam'

According to Dexerto, four major ticket-resale companies are suing Washington, D.C., over a law that limits how much marked-up tickets can cost after primary sales end.

Starting Jan. 1, 2027, that measure would bar resale prices for certain tickets in the district from rising more than 10% above face value.

Here's what to know

At the center of the dispute is D.C.'s Restricting Egregious Scalping Against Live Entertainment Amendment, or RESALE, which SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, Gametime, and TickPick are now challenging. For covered events, the law would restrict resellers to listing tickets at no more than 10% above the original purchase price.

Industry critics say the secondary market isn't set up to comply with that requirement. Brian Berry, executive director of the Ticket Policy Forum, told TechSpot, "The legally flawed Act would apply to sales largely outside the District and set arbitrary resale-only price caps tied to the original cost of a ticket, information companies in the secondary market do not have and cannot disclose because they were not part of these initial transactions."

More background

Buying tickets on the resale market can create two different problems for fans. Some people get tricked into buying fake or nonexistent seats, and others pay far more than the initial asking price for real tickets.

With RESALE, D.C. is trying to curb the steep markups buyers often face once standard inventory is gone and the remaining options move to the secondary market.

Ontario has taken a comparable approach, preventing Ticketmaster from listing resale tickets above the price they were first offered.

The case is unfolding as the ticketing industry comes under increased scrutiny. A U.S. jury found Live Nation, Ticketmaster's operator, liable, further sharpening the focus on who profits when resale prices soar past face value.

What's being done?

The RESALE Act is D.C.'s effort to cap profits from certain resold live events. Under the policy, resale prices would be capped at 10% above the original sale price.

Speaking to NBC Washington, D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen said resellers have "been running this scam for a long time and getting away with it," and that it needs to change.

The legal fight will decide whether the cap takes effect in 2027. Ontario's policy is one example of another government moving against ticket markups, and mounting pressure on companies like Ticketmaster suggests the industry is being watched more closely from multiple angles.

Berry told TechSpot: "Ticketmaster backed this law; Ticketmaster pushed this law and Ticketmaster got itself exempted from this law. That's not a law that's going to serve DC well."

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