Downing Street cracks down on ticket touts with new ban on bots

New legislation coming into force on Thursday has banned ticket touts from using automated software to buy more tickets for events than allowed.

Re-sellers are now banned from using automated software to buy more tickets for events than they are allowed, only to sell them on at inflated prices.

The new legislation came into force on Thursday, meaning that anyone caught breaking the law would now face an unlimited fine.

Bots being used to purchase tickets have become an "all too familiar problem" for punters as they try in vain to see their favourite musicians, athletes or shows.

However, as a result of the legislative and regulatory changes, Downing Street felt that they had finally turned the tide against the touts.

The likes of Death Cab For Cutie, Pixies, The Hold Steady and Iron Maiden have already put in place new measures to give real fans the opportunity to get their hands on tickets from those who can no longer attend a show and clamp down on unfair practices.

Digital and the Creative Industries Minister Margot James said, "Fans deserve the chance to see their favourite artists at a fair price. Too often they have been priced out of the market due to unscrupulous touts buying up huge batches of tickets and selling them on at ridiculous prices."

"From today I am pleased to say that we have successfully banned the bots. We are giving the power back to consumers to help to make 2018 a great year for Britain's booming events scene," added James.