Legal Action & Allegations - The FTC is suing Key Investment Group for allegedly using illegal tactics to bypass security protocols and purchasing limits, violating the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act [1][4] - Key Investment Group allegedly used fake accounts to purchase over 379,000 tickets from Ticket Master for popular events like Taylor Swift's Eras Tour [2] - The FTC alleges Key Investment Group resold the tickets at extreme markups, making millions in profits [2][10] - The FTC claims Key Investment Group circumvented ticket purchase limits by using fake humans and accounts [4] Defense & Counter-Arguments - Key Investment Group argues the case threatens the secondary ticket market and consolidates power in the industry's largest monopoly [2] - Key Investment Group previously sued the FTC, claiming its purchases didn't involve automated software or bots, thus not violating the BOTS Act [6] - The company might argue that finding a way around purchase limits isn't illegal, even if it violates policies [5] Evidence & Discovery - The FTC alleges that for one Taylor Swift concert, Key Investment Group used 49 different accounts to purchase over 200 tickets [10] - The FTC believes it can prove the allegations by showing the accounts were not tied to real individuals, violating Ticket Master's policies [11][12] Market Dynamics & Implications - The secondary ticket market involves companies marking up ticket prices massively [9] - Consolidating ticketing power in a few companies is undesirable, but the secondary market's high markups are also problematic [9]
FTC sues ticket-reselling operation for using fake accounts
NBC Newsยท2025-08-19 12:45