Florida Senate - 2018                             CS for SB 1024
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Regulated Industries; and Senator Hukill
       
       
       
       
       
       580-03262-18                                          20181024c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to ticket websites; creating s.
    3         501.9735, F.S.; defining terms; prohibiting website
    4         operators from using specified information in the sale
    5         of certain tickets; providing an exception; providing
    6         civil penalties; providing for construction;
    7         specifying that certain entities are immune from
    8         liability under this act under certain circumstances;
    9         providing an effective date.
   10          
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. Section 501.9735, Florida Statutes, is created
   14  to read:
   15         501.9735 Ticket websites; penalties.—
   16         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   17         (a) “Ticket website” means an Internet website advertising
   18  the sale of tickets, offering the sale of tickets, or offering
   19  tickets for resale to an event in this state.
   20         (b) “Venue” means an arena, stadium, theater, concert hall,
   21  or other place of exhibition or performance in this state.
   22         (c) “Website operator” means a person owning, operating, or
   23  controlling a ticket website for an event scheduled at a venue
   24  in this state.
   25         (2) A website operator may not sell a ticket to a Florida
   26  resident through a ticket website if the website operator has
   27  intentionally used an Internet domain name, as defined in s.
   28  668.602, which contains the name of the venue or any name
   29  substantially similar to the name of the venue. This subsection
   30  does not apply to a website operator who is authorized by the
   31  venue to act upon its behalf.
   32         (3) A violation of this section is a deceptive and unfair
   33  trade practice and constitutes a violation of part II of this
   34  chapter. A person who violates this section commits a deceptive
   35  and unfair trade practice punishable by the penalties provided
   36  under part II of this chapter, and is subject to the enforcement
   37  of remedies for the violation as provided in part II of this
   38  chapter.
   39         (4) This section is supplemental to those provisions of
   40  state or federal criminal or civil law which impose prohibitions
   41  or provide penalties, sanctions, or remedies against the same
   42  conduct prohibited by this section. This section may not be
   43  construed to preclude the applicability of any other law that
   44  now applies, or may in the future apply, to prohibit, penalize,
   45  or impose sanctions or remedies for any conduct that violates
   46  this section.
   47         (5) A newspaper publisher, magazine or other publication,
   48  telephone directory or directory assistance service or its
   49  officer or agent, or the owner or operator of a radio or
   50  television station, or any other owner or operator of a medium
   51  primarily devoted to advertising who publishes, broadcasts, or
   52  otherwise disseminates an advertisement in good faith without
   53  actual knowledge that such advertisement violates this section
   54  is immune from liability under this section for publishing the
   55  advertisement unless the owner or operator of such medium is the
   56  website operator who has committed the act prohibited by this
   57  section.
   58         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.