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troutman · 03-30-2006, 04:06 PM

The Economics of Ticket Scalping

http://www.jimmyatkinson.com/papers/ticketscalping.html

Ticket scalping is the resale of tickets in the secondary market. It exists at many sports and other entertainment events because under-pricing at the box office creates excess demand, thereby not allowing the market to clear. With box offices setting the prices of tickets artificially low, licensed ticket brokers and unlicensed on-site street scalpers emerge as the secondary sellers to clear the market. These ticket resellers purchase a lot of the tickets at the artificially low box office price and then meet the demands of those purchasers willing to pay higher prices for those same tickets.

While some may claim that ticket scalping is unethical and immoral, even illegal in certain states and municipalities, it is simply a free-market transaction. Most economists avidly oppose laws that make ticket scalping illegal. Such regulations do not allow the market forces to reign.

03-30-2006, 04:06 PM	#37
troutman Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Crowsnest Pass Exp:	The Economics of Ticket Scalping http://www.jimmyatkinson.com/papers/ticketscalping.html Ticket scalping is the resale of tickets in the secondary market. It exists at many sports and other entertainment events because under-pricing at the box office creates excess demand, thereby not allowing the market to clear. With box offices setting the prices of tickets artificially low, licensed ticket brokers and unlicensed on-site street scalpers emerge as the secondary sellers to clear the market. These ticket resellers purchase a lot of the tickets at the artificially low box office price and then meet the demands of those purchasers willing to pay higher prices for those same tickets. While some may claim that ticket scalping is unethical and immoral, even illegal in certain states and municipalities, it is simply a free-market transaction. Most economists avidly oppose laws that make ticket scalping illegal. Such regulations do not allow the market forces to reign.