Will Korea’s Ticket Scalping Laws Be Revised For The First Time In 50 Years?

The Record Label Industry Association Of Korea announced that the petition to revise the scalping law, which it received on October 19, was decided as an open petition.

Open petitions are processed through a public deliberation process that collects public opinions for 30 days from the decision date, and the results are notified within 90 days. Previously, the MRC filed a petition requesting revision of the scalping law through the Ministry of Justice.

Yoon Dong Hwan, Chairman of the association, stated in the petition, “Scalpers are a social cancer, like drugs. They are products with a limited period of time, such as railroad tickets, and are different in nature from resale products such as shoes and bags. According to Article 10, Paragraph 2 of the Railway Business Act, you can buy them yourself. He criticized the current situation, saying, “There should be a law that prohibits selling to others for an amount exceeding the original price, but we are just sitting on the sidelines.”

He continued, “As ticket scalpers are rampant, the number of fraudulent activities using ticket scalpers is also increasing. These illegal acts that take advantage of innocent fans’ hearts and destroy the industrial structure should be punished as felonies, but currently, in our country, they cannot be punished even as misdemeanors.”

Below is the full text of the petition from the Record Label Industry Association Of Korea.

What does scalping mean in Article 3 of the Misdemeanor Punishment Act?- A person who resells an admission ticket, boarding ticket, or boarding ticket to another person for an additional fee at a performance hall, stadium, station, ferry, bus stop, or other place where a person is admitted, boarded, or boarded for a fixed fee.This law was enacted 50 years ago, and uses the example of a ferry that does not exist today. Since it specifies a place called “a place for boarding or boarding,” if it is transacted online, or in a place other than the entrance, it will be subject to the law. It is not recognized as a scalper.

Scams are as toxic to society as drugs. Businesses that host performances and games must bear additional costs to prevent and detect ticket scalping, audiences end up spending several times more than the set ticket price, and singers and athletes feel burdened by the increased spending from fans. there is. Unauthorized scalpers are the only ones making unfair profits in a situation that no one, organizers, consumers, singers or sportspeople want.

Scalpers are not resale products such as shoes, bags, etc. The price of products such as shoes or bags is determined by their preservation value after several years, but tickets are limited-time products and become useless after a certain period of time. This is the same as the meaning of Article 10-2 of the Railway Business Act (Prohibition of illegal sales of tickets, etc.). Any person other than a railroad operator or a person entrusted by a railroad operator to sell tickets shall not sell tickets issued by a railroad operator or certificates equivalent to tickets, such as discount coupons or exchange tickets, to others, either habitually or as a business, at an amount exceeding the price at which the person purchased the ticket.

As ticket scalping is rampant, the number of scams using ticket scalpers is also increasing. These illegal acts that destroy the industrial structure by taking advantage of innocent fans should be punished as felonies, but currently, in our country, they cannot be punished even as misdemeanors.

With the advent of macros, scalpers are becoming organized and corporate. With the revision of the Public Performance Act in March 2024, purchases using macros were defined as illegal (anyone can automatically receive orders designated for the information and communications network pursuant to Article 2 (1) 1 of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, etc.). You must not illegally sell admission tickets, etc. by using a program that requires repeated input.) In reality, it is impossible to detect the macro purchases of individual scalpers.

As a member of the industry, I would like to make a sincere request. We know that it is difficult to eradicate ticket scalpers all at once. First of all, we request that the scalping law that was enacted 50 years ago be revised. I believe that the people will listen carefully to the cries that everyone wants.

 

Read more below to find out why using macros and ticket scalpers are a serious problem.

Why Using Macros To Buy Tickets Is A Serious Problem