"Stop The Bots": Music Industry Group Call For Turnbull To Take Action Against Online Scalping

5 May 2017 | 12:45 pm | Staff Writer

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Live Performance Australia has accused the Turnbull Government of failing to keep up with international efforts to combat online scalper 'ticket bots'.

The bots, newly criminalised in the UK and also banned in the US, are used by scalpers to buy up tickets en masse to popular music events and gigs.

LPA have also put their support behind Senator Nick Xenophon’s legislation to ban ticket ‘bots’, which was supported by the Opposition, the Greens and more before being knocked back by the Turnbull Government.

“Fans and artists in Australia - and around the world – should expect the Australian Government to be doing its part to fight the bots and ensure that genuine fans have fairer access to tickets,” LPA Chief Executive Evelyn Richardson said.

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"This is a global problem and the impact on fans is enormous."

LPA join the growing anti-scalping movement that includes a number of top Australian promoter, prominent artists like The Smith Street Band, Midnight Oil and Illy, and Choice, who are leading a global investigation into the resale market.

Last week, Frontier Touring announced intimate headline shows for US star Harry Styles with extensive measures in place to ensure scalpers were unable to cash in on the tour.