California Governor Newsom signs law targeting speculative ‘ghost tickets’

California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed Assembly Bill 1349, a bipartisan measure designed to combat the sale of ‘ghost tickets.’ These are tickets advertised by resellers who do not yet own them, a practice often used to inflate prices or deceive consumers.

The law prohibits the sale of tickets that the advertiser does not own and bans the use of software intended to manipulate venue purchasing restrictions. Under the new legislation, ticket resellers are required to implement reasonable measures to prevent speculative sales. Violators may face misdemeanor charges and penalties.

Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, the bill’s author, noted that fans often purchase these tickets at inflated prices before official sales even begin, sometimes failing to receive the tickets they paid for. While the bill initially saw support from Live Nation, Newsom issued a signing statement suggesting that certain marketplaces might be exempt from the regulation and requested that lawmakers revisit the language.