Recent State Attorney General Activity

New York AG Pursues Online Ticket Resale Companies

According to the New York Attorney General, TicketNetwork and Ticket Galaxy deceived New York consumers into purchasing non-existent tickets at inflated prices. According to the OAG, New York consumer placed more than 96,000 orders through speculative ticket programs between 2012 and 2018.

The Complaint can be seen, here.

The alleged unlawful conduct centers on undisclosed “speculative tickets” – offers to sell tickets that the ticket seller does not have, has not yet purchased, and does not have a contractual right to obtain. Only after a consumer places an order for speculative tickets, according to the OAG, does the listing broker attempt to purchase the real tickets, at a lower price and from a different source, to provide to the buyer. The broker allegedly keeps the difference between the price that he paid and the price at which he sold the speculative ticket.

“Speculative tickets like these are nothing more than a scam that hurts New Yorkers and undermines the entire ticket industry – driving up prices while defrauding consumers into believing that they’re buying a real ticket,” said Attorney General Underwood. “New Yorkers should not have to – unknowingly – bet on whether a seller can actually deliver the tickets for which they paid. This office will continue to do what’s necessary to protect New York fans.”

The complaint also alleges that the defendants made other false and misleading statements. For example, purportedly lying to customers about why purchased tickets would not be provided. The complaint alleges that defendants were frequently contacted by upset customers.

The complaint alleges that the CEO and owner of TicketNetwork and Ticket Galaxy oversaw the scheme and was fully aware of the consumer deception. The complaint also alleges that many fans have been harmed by the defendants’ deceptive scheme.

The complaint alleges that, through the conduct described above, the defendants have violated New York consumer protection laws meant to protect against deceptive acts and practices, false advertising, and bait advertising – including Executive Law § 63(12), and General Business Law §§ 349, 350, and 396.

The complaint seeks, without limitation, injunctive relief, disgorgement of profits, restitution and damages to consumers, and penalties the alleged conspiracy.

New Mexico Attorney General Sues Tech Companies

The New Mexico Attorney General has sued various tech companies, alleging that gaming applications for children violate the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act and the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act’s prohibition on collecting personal data from children under the age of 13 without parental consent.

The complaint alleges that the companies developed and marketed gaming applications designed for children that collect users’ geolocation, demographics, online activity and other personal data without verifiable parental consent. It also alleges that the data was provided to third-parties for behavioral targeting purposes.

The complaint seeks, without limitation, injunctive relief, restitution and civil penalties.

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