Free Republic

People who have made money from reselling tickets to concerts or sporting events this year will face new scrutiny from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) when it comes time to file their 2023 taxes. A newly implemented law lowered the tax reporting thresholds for users of e-commerce platforms, including event ticketing websites like Ticketmaster and StubHub, by requiring those platforms to provide information on sellers’ proceeds to the IRS if their ticket sales in 2023 were worth more than $600. The previous reporting threshold applied to users with $20,000 in revenue and more than 200 transactions, but the new threshold...

Swift has had a direct impact on cutting scalpers out of ticket sales, driving more money to artists. Fans waiting to buy tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras tour next week should expect two things: high demand and high prices. After all, it’s been five years and four albums since Swift toured, with her newest album, Midnights, on track to be the best-selling record of the year — earning Swift the title of first artist to ever have 10 songs dominate the top 10 of the Hot 100 chart. That popularity means that Swift can set high prices for her tickets...

ALBANY – New criminal penalties have been approved to restrict the use of automated ticket purchasing software known as “bots” that can gobble up mass amounts of sports and entertainment tickets before fans hoping to attend a popular event even have a chance to tap the buy button on their computers.

China has vowed to clamp down on 'scalpers' selling tickets for hospital appointments at hugely inflated prices. Most hospitals in the country require patients to purchase registration tickets to see a doctor or receive treatment but the system is widely abused. Scalpers buy up tickets for around £30 and can resell them for as much as £450, with those most in need of hospital treatment the biggest victims of the scandal. They mainly operate in the largest cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai. ...

A federal judge has ordered the Patent and Trademark Office to cancel registration of the Washington Redskins' trademark, ruling that the team name may be disparaging to Native Americans. The ruling Wednesday by Judge Gerald Bruce Lee affirms an earlier finding by an administrative appeal board.

Cat Stevens is canceling his New York performance just weeks after announcing a six-city tour. Stevens said on his Facebook page Wednesday that he would not keep the New York engagement because its requirement for paper tickets has led to exorbitant resale prices. …

TALLAHASSEE -- Responding to what he calls ''obscenely high prices'' for concert tickets, a state lawmaker from Miami Beach wants to crack down on people who scoop up tickets and resell them at hundreds of dollars more than face value. Rep. Dan Gelber, who has two daughters, ages 7 and 9, will unveil his proposed legislation Tuesday at North Beach Elementary School, just hours before Disney Channel pop sensation Hannah Montana performs at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise. His bill -- which would have to navigate through a GOP-controlled Legislature before becoming law -- takes aim primarily at those who...

LOS ANGELES - A federal judge has granted a request by Ticketmaster LLC to block a software company from making or distributing computer programs used to flood the ticket retailer's Web site with orders, beating consumers who log onto the Web site manually to buy tickets. ADVERTISEMENT U.S. District Court Judge Audrey B. Collins issued a preliminary injunction against RMG Technologies Inc. on Monday, barring the Pittsburgh, Pa.-based firm from buying or facilitating the purchase of tickets from Ticketmaster's Web site for the purpose of reselling them. Collins concluded Ticketmaster would prove its claims that RMG infringed on its copyrights,...

Sergio Aguilar, of Tampico, Mexico, came here with three buddies and doesn't have tickets. They doubt they'll be able to find any they can afford. With the game sold out long ago, scalpers were asking 500 to 1000 euros (or as much as $1,250) per ticket. Instead, Aguilar and thousands of others watch the games on giant video screens at the FIFA Fan Fest outside the stadium, where the World Cup organizing committee has done its best to recreate the stadium atmosphere. If you have tickets to sell, there is a killing to be made. Seats for big first-round games...

By JOHN SULLIVAN, Staff Writer RALEIGH - A Wake County judge stopped six companies Wednesday from selling high-priced tickets to the Stanley Cup finals at the Entertainment and Sports Arena after state Attorney General Roy Cooper filed a suit accusing them of ticket scalping. Wake Superior Court Judge Donald Stephens issued a temporary restraining order against the companies, citing "sufficient evidence to believe that the defendants are engaged in unfair and deceptive commercial practices." Stephens said consumers would continue to suffer losses unless he stopped the companies from advertising or selling tickets in violation of state law. North Carolina...