Jersey says it’s the boss when it comes to tickets to see the "Boss" and filed charges Wednesday against three ticket resellers, including one in Vernon, Connecticut.
New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram is accusing Vernon-based TicketNetwork Inc., Select-A-Ticket and Orbitz Worldwide of illegally selling tickets to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’s concerts, which will close Giants Stadium.
One lawsuit targets Orbitz Worldwide Inc. of Chicago, the company behind cheaptickets.com and TicketNetwork, which supplies the technology to cheaptickets.com and other online resale marketplaces.
One problem, Milgram said, is that the companies offered hundreds of tickets to the Sept. 30, Oct. 2 and Oct. 3 concerts at hundreds of dollars above face value more than a week before the tickets were to go on sale.
And there’s more. The suit claims Orbitz and TicketNetwork sold tickets that do not exist.
TicketNetwork issued a written statement saying it takes the attorney general's actions "very seriously" and is not currently selling tickets to Bruce Springsteen's performances at Giants Stadium.
The company said it hopes to work with the attorney general's office "to ensure that industry transparency is achieved."
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Brian Hoyt, a spokesman for Chicago-based Orbitz, is pointing fingers at TicketNetwork.
Orbitz doesn't offer concert tickets directly to customers but instead partners with TicketNetwork, Hoyt said.
"We will be speaking with them to find out what happened in this instance," Hoyt said.
Select-A-Ticket owner Thomas Patania defended his company's practices Wednesday.
Select-A-Ticket frequently offers "category" or "zone" seating for major events like the Super Bowl, in essence allowing customers to pay early for seats in general locations, then filling the orders once tickets become available, he said.
Springsteen announced last week that he will play the final concerts at Giants Stadium on Sept. 30, Oct. 2 and Oct. 3, before the stadium is torn down over the winter to make way for the new Giants Jets Stadium.
Tickets for the shows are to go on sale Monday, and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority said Wednesday that no tickets are being offered early.
"There are no legitimate tickets on sale," the NJSEA said in a statement. "There is no pre-sale or fan club sale for these concerts. Concert fans need to be especially wary before tickets officially go on sale."
Milgram said the lawsuits were filed after undercover agents first bought the tickets and then documented that the ticket resellers did not actually possess them. The suits are part of a wide-ranging state crackdown on practices that online brokers allegedly use to drive up ticket prices for average fans.
The lawsuits aim to stop the companies from selling and advertising tickets they don't own. The suits also seek restitution for affected consumers, who can file complaints with the Division of Consumer Affairs.
