Interim Study Explores Online Ticket Fraud 

OKLAHOMA CITY – Sen. Bill Coleman, R-Ponca City, held an interim study on Monday to explore how legislation could cut down on fraudulent online ticket sales to concerts, plays and other live performances at major performing arts centers across the state.

Officials from Oklahomans for the Arts, consumers, ticketing platforms and representatives from various performing arts venues spoke before the Senate Business and Insurance Committee to detail this widespread problem and advocate for legislation to crack down on fraudulent and deceptive ticket sales and prevent the use of bots to bypass online ticketing queues.

Presenters from venues, including the Civic Center Music Hall, the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts in Stillwater and the Goddard Center for Visual and Performing Arts in Ardmore, outlined the many ways Oklahomans are being scammed on the secondary ticket market. They also described the backlash from customers who unknowingly purchased fake tickets. Several speakers noted that these scams cost their nonprofits thousands of dollars and force staff to spend hundreds of hours addressing issues caused by ticket resellers and fraudsters.

Coleman thanked all the speakers for taking the time to participate.

“Ticket fraud has become a serious problem across the state, and it’s eroding consumer confidence in supporting the arts,” he said. “Oklahomans are being misled, and too often the frustration ends up directed at venue employees who have no control over the situation. It’s a vicious cycle that needs to stop. I look forward to working with stakeholders statewide to advance legislation that protects Oklahomans from these rampant scams.”

Earlier this year, Senator Coleman worked with Oklahomans for the Arts to introduce the Oklahoma Fraud and Ticketing Accountability Act, which would implement a number of consumer protection reforms to crack down on fraudulent ticket sales and address online bots.

Coleman added that bots purchasing hundreds or thousands of tickets as soon as online queues open presents a unique challenge. He cited recent reports from Kansas that country musician Garth Brooks halted ticket sales for a show in Kansas City due to “excessive bot activity.”

Coleman said there’s already federal legislation in place to curb bot activity, but Oklahoma likely needs stronger protections and greater enforcement.

Coleman said the information from this study will help him as he plans to file new legislation on this issue ahead of the next legislative session, which begins Feb. 1, 2027.