DENVER — The fine print is what adds to the cost of your ticket to a Colorado Avalanche game or concert ticket.
The fine print allows for this service fee or that ticketing charge.
The state legislature is working on a bill. It doesn’t get rid of those fees; it just makes them more obvious.
The legislature, however, is not addressing an issue that some of the biggest names in music are warning their fans about.
Tickets for a Nov. 5 concert with Queen and Adam Lambert at Ball Arena go on sale on Friday.
In the announcement of the ticket sale, the artists and promoter warned fans about Colorado laws that are friendly to those who want to sell tickets higher than face value.
It reads: "Unfortunately, the states of NY, IL and CO have laws in place which protect ticket scalpers – these laws prohibit artists from being able to restrict the transfer of their tickets to face value exchanges only."
“I think a lot of people are surprised that this actually doesn’t exist in other states, including myself, as I’m delving into all this ticketing world,” said State Rep. Mandy Lindsay, D-Aurora.
Lindsay is one of the sponsors of a Senate Bill 260. The bill will attempt to prevent bots – computers – from purchasing tickets to events automatically. It will try to crack down on fake websites that look like ticketing sites. And it will require that ticket fees and added charges must be shown up front and not after the ticket has been selected for purchase.
It does not prevent someone from selling a ticket above face value.
“We passed a law here in 2008 that doesn’t allow for prohibitions on ticket transferability,” Lindsay said.
That 2008 law made it illegal for a venue, artist or team to apply conditions to a ticket buyer. Meaning, you are free to do what you want with a ticket you purchase.
“That’s the law right now, and I think a lot of people in Colorado are quite used to that,” Lindsay said.
Earlier this month, The Cure announced a concert tour with a stop at Fiddler’s Green on June 6. Following the tour announcement, The Cure posted a similar warning on Instagram about Colorado’s law.
“To help minimise (sic) resale and keep prices at face value, tickets for this tour will not be transferable. If something comes up that prevents a fan from being able to use a ticket they have purchased, they will be able resell it on a face value ticket exchange,” The Cure wrote. “…the states of NY, IL and CO make this very difficult – they actually have laws in place that protect scalpers!”
“I think they have the right to sell tickets, to set prices as they wish,” Lindsay said. “It is something that I would absolutely explore for the future, but yeah unfortunately, not this year, not in this bill.”
What do other states have that Colorado does not?
Both tours are stopping in Massachusetts, which has a law preventing the sale of a ticket higher than two dollars more than face value. The law, however, allows for additional costs to be added for service charges.
California law prevents a ticket being sold for higher than face value while on the grounds of the venue.
Washington law tries to limit bots from buying tickets.
Those states may not have laws that prevent the sale of resale at higher values, but Colorado clearly has a law preventing any restrictions on a ticket seller.
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