Compiled from The Paper
 
According to a July 24 message on the People's Daily Online "Leadership Message Board," in response to a Shenzhen netizen's complaint that "concert tickets sell out instantly, while scalpers resell them at inflated prices on social media," the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports replied that it has transferred clues regarding the high-priced sale of Ferris wheel tickets to the Municipal Public Security Bureau, requesting legal action.

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Case review
The netizen posted on the People's Daily Online "Leadership Message Board" on May 27, stating that with the strong recovery of the performance market, scalpers who had been inactive for a long time have emerged in full force. Some concert tickets sell out instantly upon release, yet scalpers resell them at inflated prices on social media. From a legal perspective, reselling performance tickets crosses the legal line and can be punished with fines or detention under the Public Security Administration Punishments Law. From a market perspective, scalpers hoard tickets and arbitrarily raise prices, infringing on consumers' right to know, increasing their financial burden, and disrupting market order. If prices are too high or fake tickets are sold, it harms audience sentiment and directly affects the sustainable development of the performing arts industry. It is recommended to adopt practices from Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and other cities by implementing a real-name ticket purchasing system for concerts, similar to high-speed rail ticketing, to effectively combat and curb scalpers, regulate the performance industry, and protect people's rights. As a frontier of reform and opening up, Shenzhen should set an example for the country and lead the healthy development of the national performance ticket market.
 
The Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports replied on July 24 that the issues raised in the netizen's message have been legally investigated and handled by relevant departments of the Longgang District Government. On June 16, the Longgang District Bureau met with the event organizer and Damai Ticketing, reviewed Damai's backend data, and found no violations in ticket sales. On June 14, the bureau transferred clues regarding the high-priced sale of Ferris wheel tickets to the Municipal Public Security Bureau, requesting legal action under Article 51, Paragraph 2 of the Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Performances and Article 52, Paragraph 3 of the Public Security Administration Punishments Law of the People's Republic of China.
 
 
Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Performances
Article 51, Paragraph 2
Anyone committing one of the following acts shall be punished by the public security department or public security firefighting agency according to their legal authority; if a crime is constituted, criminal liability shall be pursued:
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Forging, altering commercial performance tickets, or selling forged or altered commercial performance tickets.
The performance organizer that prints or sells tickets exceeding the approved audience capacity or for areas outside the designated audience zones shall be ordered by the public security departments of county-level or above governments to rectify, with illegal gains confiscated and a fine of three to five times the illegal gains imposed; if there are no illegal gains or the illegal gains are less than 10,000 yuan, a fine of 30,000 to 50,000 yuan shall be imposed; if serious consequences result, the original licensing authority shall revoke the commercial performance permit; if a crime is constituted, criminal liability shall be pursued according to law.
 
Public Security Administration Punishments Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 52
Whoever commits any of the following acts shall be detained for not less than ten days but not more than fifteen days and may also be fined not more than 1,000 yuan; if the circumstances are relatively minor, they shall be detained for not less than five days but not more than ten days and may also be fined not more than 500 yuan:
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(3) Forging, altering, or scalping tickets for trains, ships, flights, cultural performances, sports events, or other valuable tickets or vouchers.
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[1] The author's perspective
Online scalpers are extremely harmful, often referred to as profiteering, as they prioritize their own interests over consumer rights and the order of the economic market. Many people believe that scalping tickets is merely an improper profit-making activity, unaware that this behavior is already illegal. It not only disrupts the normal sales order of businesses but also harms the interests of ordinary consumers. Worse still, some individuals take advantage of the chaos, selling fake tickets at high prices to deceive consumers. Many consumers, upon discovering this, do not know when to file a complaint and have to silently bear the loss. This shows that it is very necessary for China to establish corresponding laws and departments to regulate such behavior.