So as a family, we have had season tickets to a local professional sports team for many decades. Recently they have asked us to verify our identity thru a 3rd party service. This third party service asks for all kinds of invasive information such as social security number, DL number, and all kinds of extra information. Am I wrong to flatly refuse to do this? Ticketmaster runs the majority of sports teams accounts in our area (MLB, NHL, NBA…and more). Ticketmaster has had all kinds of data breaches over the past few years. We have had at least 7 account reps over the last 5 years from the team and my current one could not give me a run down of how they are planning to protect our information. I highly doubt their data protection is great.
I have listened to Clark for many years and do not even give my Doctor our socials anymore. We have paid our team invoice on time for many years and never had an issue. The team rep said they “will not renew our tickets” if we do not give them this information. This seems over the top to me but maybe I am over reacting.
I would ask them for a legitimate, legal reason for this. They may be asking for it because of the resale market? Maybe there is some sort of reason if you could resell them for a profit. But still, I don’t think it is reasonable without a clear legal reason.
It really stinks that it is the teams sales rep giving you the shake down. Maybe there is a higher up with the team that you can contact?
Thank you for the reply. The team has an “official resale partner” which shockingly is also ticketmaster! They encourage season ticket holders to use this because they likely get a percentage of the sale.
I asked to speak to the higher up and he wrote me back:
This verification process will ensure tickets are reserved for verified fans, increase your ticket access, and reduce bot purchases and other fraudulent practices.
I wonder if these are steps because of the lawsuits they are facing. They messed up Taylor Swift’s Eras tour tickets pretty bad.
Personally I hate them. They took over the Gas South Arena close to me. They are now the exclusive ticket provider for events there. Tickets for my favorite hockey team went from $60 for two to $100 for two.
The sports team’s hands are tied because the venue made the deal. It is their own micro monopoly. The season is half over and I might not go to a game.