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That's the ticket: An FTC workshop about online ticket sales

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Event Description

The workshop, first announced in October, was originally set to take place in March, but was rescheduled due to the extended government shutdown. It was live tweeted using the hashtag #FTCticket.

The workshop explored consumer protection issues in the online ticket marketplace for events, such as concerts and sporting events. Topics included practices that limit ticket availability on the primary market, mislead consumers about ticket prices or availability, and confuse consumers about the entity from which they are purchasing.

  • 9:30 am

    Welcoming Remarks

    Rebecca K. Slaughter
    Commissioner
    Federal Trade Commission

    9:45 am

    Keynote Speaker

    Eric Budish
    Professor of Economics
    The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

    10:15 am

    Panel 1-A: Bots and the BOTS Act

    Gary Adler
    Executive Director and Counsel
    National Association of Ticket Brokers

    Rami Essaid
    Co-Founder, Chief Product Officer
    Distil Networks

    David Marcus
    Executive Vice President, Head of Ticketmaster Music
    Ticketmaster

    Jeff Poirier
    General Manager of Music, Theatre & Performing Arts
    StubHub

    Joe Ridout
    Manager of Consumer Services
    Consumer Action

    Noah Stein
    Assistant Attorney General, Bureau of Internet & Technology
    New York Attorney General’s Office

    Moderator:

    Mamie Kresses
    Attorney
    Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission

    11:15 am

    Break

    11:30 am

    Panel 1-B: Other Consumer Protection Issues Around Ticket Availability

    Gary Adler
    Executive Director and Counsel
    National Association of Ticket Brokers

    Russell D’Souza
    Co-Founder
    SeatGeek

    David Marcus
    Executive Vice President, Head of Ticketmaster Music
    Ticketmaster

    Jeff Poirier
    General Manager of Music, Theatre & Performing Arts
    StubHub

    Joe Ridout
    Manager of Consumer Services
    Consumer Action

    Bob Roux
    President of United States Concerts
    Live Nation Entertainment

    Noah Stein
    Assistant Attorney General, Bureau of Internet & Technology
    New York Attorney General’s Office

    Moderators:

    Mamie Kresses
    Attorney
    Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission

    Eric Budish
    Professor of Economics
    The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

    12:30 pm

    Lunch Break

    1:45 pm

    Panel 2: The Adequacy of Ticket Price and Fee Disclosures

    Laura Brett
    Director
    National Advertising Division of Better Business Bureau National Programs

    Russell D’Souza
    Co-Founder
    SeatGeek

    Sara Fisher Ellison
    Senior Lecturer
    Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Economics Department

    Anna Laitin
    Director of Financial Policy
    Consumer Reports

    John Lawrence
    Regulatory and Compliance Counsel
    StubHub

    Tamara Mendelsohn
    Vice President and General Manager of Consumer
    Eventbrite

    Patti-Anne Tarlton
    Executive Vice President of Venues and Promoters
    Ticketmaster

    Moderator:

    Michael Ostheimer
    Attorney
    Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission

    2:45 pm

    Break

    3:00 pm

    Panel 3: Consumer Confusion: What and From Whom Am I Buying?

    John Breyault
    Vice President for Public Policy, Telecommunications, and Fraud
    National Consumers League

    Gilbert Hoover
    Vice President and General Counsel
    The Shubert Organization

    Katy McCabe
    Senior Policy Advisor
    Global Product Policy Team, Google

    Michael Marion
    Chairman
    International Association of Venue Managers

    Michael Newquist
    Vice President of Event Marketing & Ticketing
    Ultimate Fighting Championship

    Carl Szabo
    Vice President and General Counsel
    NetChoice

    Parul Shah
    Assistant Director
    United Kingdom’s Competition & Markets Authority

    Don Vaccaro
    Founder and Chief Executive Officer
    TicketNetwork

    Moderator:

    Devin W. Domond
    Attorney
    Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission

    4:00 pm

    Closing Remarks

    Mary K. Engle
    Associate Director
    Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission

FTC Privacy Policy

Under the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) or other laws, we may be required to disclose to outside organizations the information you provide when you pre-register. The Commission will consider all timely and responsive public comments, whether filed in paper or electronic form, and as a matter of discretion, we make every effort to remove home contact information for individuals from the public comments before posting them on the FTC website.

The FTC Act and other laws we administer permit the collection of your pre-registration contact information and the comments you file to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate.  Under the Freedom of Information Act or other laws, we may be required to disclose to outside organizations the information you provide when you pre-register.  For additional information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see the Commission’s Privacy Act system for public records and comprehensive privacy policy.

This event will be open to the public and may be photographed, videotaped, webcast, or otherwise recorded.  By participating in this event, you are agreeing that your image — and anything you say or submit — may be posted indefinitely at ftc.gov or on one of the Commission's publicly available social media sites.

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