California can end the ticket scam that ruins concerts | Opinion
In 2026, no doubt many Californians are looking forward to a live music show. But unfortunately, for many artists, fans and venues, experiences may be distorted or ruined by fraudulent “speculative ticket” listings — turning a moment of happiness into a nightmare.
Speculative listings occur when scalpers post tickets for sale that they don’t actually have. A fan searches for seats, finds what looks like a legitimate listing and pays hundreds of dollars. But in reality, the seller is gambling on being able to find those tickets somewhere else later. If they can’t, the fan is left scrambling or stuck with a refund instead of the seats they thought they bought.
This happens more than you might think: Major resale platforms like StubHub, Vivid Seats and SeatGeek all allow speculative listings, and fans often have no way to tell the difference between a real ticket and a gamble. That may be about to change in California.
Recently, the California Assembly passed Assembly Bill 1349, authored by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, D-Culver City. It is a bipartisan bill that would outlaw these deceitful speculative listings and ban listings where the seller doesn’t have actual possession or the legal right to sell the tickets being offered. The legislation is now before the state senate.
AB 1349 would create clear standards requiring sellers to possess tickets before listing them, establish new refund options and requirements when transactions fail and create enforceable penalties for violators. It’s a no-brainer policy that would protect consumers, empower artists and venues of all sizes and boost our state’s economy with no downside or costs.
Live music and entertainment are foundational to California’s economy, with a total economic impact of over $12 billion a year, supporting nearly 85,000 jobs and bringing in more than $675 million in state and local tax revenue.
Speculative listings undermine this ecosystem. Part of the problem is simple supply and demand, but another part of the problem is outright fraud. Scalpers post deceptive listings for tickets they don’t even possess and that often haven’t even been released for sale. Those listings aren’t satisfying demand; they are generating it by creating artificial scarcity and leveraging fans’ commitment to the artists they love at a time when there is no legitimate way to get seats.
When speculative listings fall through and fans are left empty-handed, “responsible” resellers say they will refund the purchase price. But refunds offer little comfort and fail to compensate buyers for their full loss, especially when buyers — especially those who live in rural areas — have paid money to travel to shows, pay for hotel rooms, take time off work and arrange childcare.
For many families, a concert is a once-a-year splurge, and there’s no making up for a ruined night. It also creates operational burdens for venue staff dealing with upset and confused fans whose experience is ruined through no fault of the venue. Smaller, lean-staffed venues face the most difficulty with these issues.
We can’t let irresponsible and dishonest scalper-powered platforms rip off California music fans for another year. Let’s make disappointed fans exploited by speculative ticket listings a thing of the past.
Mike Montgomery is CEO of CALinnovates, a nonpartisan tech advocacy coalition.
This story was originally published February 14, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "California can end the ticket scam that ruins concerts | Opinion."