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BookMyShow, Zomato to print buyers’ names on tickets of major events? Directions issued to curb black-marketing
Maharashtra Cyber Cell Chief Yashasvi Yadav issued directions to BookMyShow and Zomato to curb black-marketing of tickets for high-profile concerts, matches and other events.
The Maharashtra Cyber Cell has directed BookMyShow and Zomato to print buyers' names on tickets for high-profile events to curb black marketing and resale.
Maharashtra Cyber Cell Chief Yashasvi Yadav said a major “controversy” erupted ahead of Coldplay's show and high-profile cricket matches.
“A problem arose that many people held many tickets with themselves and resold them through social media platforms, with many fold increase in ticket prices,” he said.
“Individuals were buying 25-20 tickets for the purpose of black-marketing,” he said.
He said officials of major ticketing platforms, BookMyShow and Zomato, were called and instructed to do the following:
1. Mandatorily print buyers' names on tickets of high-profile shows
2. Allow entry only after checking a government-issued ID.
This is not valid for all shows but only for shows that that are high in demand, the official said. Yashasvi Yadav added, “A white paper will outline legal and technical measures for ticket regulation.”
Tickets for such events will not be transferable, even in the event the buyer is unable to go to the concert themselves. “In that case, just like for airlines, you have to cancel the ticket and make a fresh booking. A refund will be issued as per the ticketing platform's policy,” Yadav was quoted by NDTV as saying.
Black marketing of tickets
Maharashtra Cyber Cell addressed the issue of black marketing of tickets after a petition filed in the Bombay High Court raised concerns about malpractices in ticket sales for British band Coldplay’s concert.
The PIL said there are several irregularities and illegalities in the sale of tickets for major events such as concerts and live shows.
The petition also claimed that irregularities came to the fore when the tickets for the Coldplay concert were made available on the BookMyShow platform. It said that such illegal means were rampant during the IPL matches, the cricket World Cup matches in 2023 and the concerts of singers Taylor Swift and Diljit Dosanjh.
The Bombay High Court dismissed the plea in January of this year.
In October last year, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said it detected alleged irregularities after conducting raids in a money laundering probe into the “black marketing” of tickets for Coldplay and Diljit's concerts, news agency PTI reported.
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First Published:13 Feb 2025, 05:34 PM IST
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