SeatGeek, Vivid Seats and others sue D.C. over 10% ticket resale cap
Four ticket resale sites have sued Washington, D.C. to block a law that would cap second-hand ticket prices at 10% above face value.
SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, TickPick and Gametime filed the case alongside the Ticket Policy Forum, which is acting as lead plaintiff. At stake is what sellers can charge and what platforms can add on for concerts, theatre, comedy and other live events in the capital.
The complaint was filed in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on 14 October. The plaintiffs are seeking a preliminary injunction, a court order that would stop the law taking effect while the case is heard. The law at issue, the District's RESALE Act, is due to apply from 1 January 2027.
The RESALE Act caps the resale price at 10% above the original price paid, including fees and taxes, according to Music Business Worldwide. That means the ceiling follows what the first buyer actually paid, not just the printed ticket price. The Act also limits the service fee a resale marketplace can charge to 10% of the original ticket price.
In practice, the two caps work together. One controls the seller's asking price. The other controls the platform's cut.
The scope is not blanket. Tickets to most sporting events in the District and movie tickets are exempt from the RESALE Act. For listings that are covered, resale marketplaces must show the original purchase price of every ticket.
The lead plaintiff, the Ticket Policy Forum, describes itself as a trade association of online ticket marketplaces. Its members include SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, TickPick and Gametime.
Part of the challenge turns on speech. The plaintiffs allege the requirement to publish the original price violates their First Amendment rights, the US constitutional protection for free speech, as reported by NOTUS. The court has not yet decided whether to grant the injunction or how the wider case will proceed.
For fans, this means the rules for buying a spare ticket in D.C. are now uncertain. If the law takes effect as written, a resale listing would show what the ticket first sold for and could not go far above it. If the marketplaces win, that cap would not come into force.
