Ethical Ticket Resale Site Scarlet Mist Closes Down Due To Unethical Practices
Friday, 16 September 2011
Written by Elliott Batte
Scarlet Mist, an ethical ticket resale website set up to help music fans sell on unwanted gig tickets at their original value, has closed down – after it was revealed that users were committing fraud.
Launched in 2003, Richard and Olly Marks set the website up to combat the rising number of shark-y ticket touts that charge obscene prices for tickets – something Stereoboard feels very strongly about. But unfortunately, touts managed to take advantage of the website and used it to further their fraudulent ways. They have since been forced to shut down their website, at least temporarily, with little or no hope of the site returning as a free service.
“The close ties between the primary ticket market and the secondary tout market have got closer and closer over the years,” the Marks brothers said. “The ticket market is a bizarre and strange world, where opaque pricing structures, compulsory handling charges and non-transferable non-refundable sales are all regarded as entirely routine practice.
“Ticket touting is a mixed blessing; there are many music fans that are willing to pay the prices that they charge. Successive governments have looked at the issue – and Scarlet Mist has given evidence to various working parties and reviews.
“We do not think it is practical to make touts illegal, but we do think that they should pay tax on their earnings. We have lobbied for this, and we believe that the websites that act as front-ends for high-earning touts should be required to share information with the tax inspectors”
The pair are hoping to find someone or something that will help them bring back Scarlet Mist, but for the time being, it remains offline.
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