The Supreme Court of Canada has declined to hear an appeal by Ticketmaster and Live Nation, which face class-action lawsuits in multiple provinces for allegedly profiting from third-party ticket reselling.
The case stems from allegations Ticketmaster facilitated mass ticket scalping in breach of its own terms of use and policy, allowing resellers to use automated 91裸聊视频渢icket bots91裸聊视频� to scoop up event tickets beyond limits it imposes on individual buyers.
The class-action lawsuit filed in B.C. was one of five launched against the companies in 2018 after media reports about Ticketmaster91裸聊视频檚 activity in the secondary ticket market.
The Toronto Star and the CBC published stories about an undercover investigation of Ticketmaster91裸聊视频檚 pitch to so-called 91裸聊视频渢icket resellers91裸聊视频� at a convention in Las Vegas in the summer of 2018.
In a 2023 ruling from the B.C. Court of Appeal, the panel of judges laid out the background of what spurred the lawsuits in B.C., Ontario, Saskatchewan and Quebec.
At the centre of the ensuing controversy was Ticketmaster91裸聊视频檚 pitch to professional scalpers on the use of Tradedesk, an inventory software product used by resellers to 91裸聊视频渧alidate and manage91裸聊视频� tickets they sell on the company91裸聊视频檚 website.
The media reports 91裸聊视频渟uggested91裸聊视频� that the company was touting the software to ticket resellers as a means of facilitating 91裸聊视频渕ass scalping,91裸聊视频� which appeared to violate the Ticketmaster website91裸聊视频檚 terms of use.
In B.C., lead plaintiff David Gomel claims he paid about US$437 for tickets to a Bruno Mars concert in Vancouver scheduled for July 2017.
Gomel bought the tickets from StubHub, a secondary seller of event tickets that competes with Ticketmaster.
The lawsuits hinge, in part, on claims of a 91裸聊视频済eneral inflationary effect91裸聊视频� on the secondary market for tickets, forcing people to pay more than face value, in violation of consumer protection legislation and the Competition Act.
The class in British Columbia claims Ticketmaster wrongfully profited by facilitating ticket reselling, while falsely claiming that members of the public would have a 91裸聊视频渇air opportunity91裸聊视频� to buy tickets at their face value rather than at inflated markups.
In its submissions to the Supreme Court of Canada, Ticketmaster argued that its purchase policy and terms of use were agreements with individuals who used the company91裸聊视频檚 website to buy tickets, rather than 91裸聊视频渞epresentations91裸聊视频� to the public at-large.
The company claimed the B.C. Court of Appeal got it wrong when it allowed the class-action to move forward by turning a 91裸聊视频渃onsumer contract into a promise to a market at-large.91裸聊视频�
Ticketmaster claimed in its Supreme Court of Canada submissions that the lawsuits it faces 91裸聊视频渉ave the potential to impact every business operating an e-commerce platform in Canada by vastly enlarging the kinds of claims they may face.91裸聊视频�
The company claimed that hearing its appeal would give the high court 91裸聊视频渁n opportunity to provide guidance on whether website terms of use are a sufficient factual basis for claims of misrepresentation to the public.91裸聊视频�
The Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the company91裸聊视频檚 request to hear the appeal, upholding the B.C. Court of Appeal91裸聊视频檚 July 2023 ruling.
The company91裸聊视频檚 lawyer, the B.C. law firm representing the class and lead plaintiff David Gomel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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