Quebec justice minister tables bill to restrict ‘parasite’ ticket resellers

QUÉBEC – The Quebec government has tabled a new bill to crack down on online ticket resales and to regulate subscription services.

On Tuesday, Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette said ticket resellers profit off the backs of Quebec artists and performers by charging exorbitant prices to consumers. 

“Neither the Quebec entertainment industry nor Quebec artists see any of the profits made by resellers,” he said during a news conference in Quebec City. “The companies behind these unfair practices are nothing more than parasites on Quebec culture.”

The new legislation, tabled Tuesday in the provincial legislature, would require ticket resellers such as Ticketmaster and StubHub to make clear they are not the official seller and that consumers may find cheaper tickets from the original vendor.

The bill comes following several high-profile examples of inflated ticket prices in the province. In 2023, free tickets for a tribute ceremony in honour of Les Cowboys Fringants singer Karl Tremblay, who had died after battling prostate cancer, were scooped up in a matter of minutes and then resold for hundreds of dollars. Tremblay’s partner asked fans not to buy the tickets. 

And last month, tickets to see Paul McCartney perform at the Bell Centre in Montreal were resold for thousands of dollars. 

Quebec already has legislation forbidding resellers from inflating ticket prices unless they have an agreement with an event producer. But Jolin-Barrette said some resellers are flouting the law. “Some resale platforms conceal their status as resellers and operate clandestinely without having an agreement with the official seller,” he said. 

The new legislation is meant to boost transparency and encourage consumers to buy tickets from official vendors, he said. Resellers will have to inform customers of the original ticket price and the name of the ticket’s previous owner. They will also have to alert customers to any cancellations or changes to the event. 

Sara Eva Levac, a lawyer and analyst with Option Consommateurs, a consumer protection group, said people often don’t know they’re buying from a resale platform and not an official vendor. “They later realize that they actually paid more than they should have,” she said. 

However, Quebec is not going as far as the U.K. government, which tabled legislation last month to ban the resale of concert and live event tickets for more than their original value. Levac said her group had called for increased transparency, but not an outright ban. 

“We don’t believe it’s absolutely necessary to prohibit the fact that if I bought a ticket to a show and ultimately can’t go, I can resell it to someone else,” she said. 

Inflated ticket resale prices have also prompted outrage elsewhere in Canada. In October, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he was looking at the issue after Blue Jays fans complained of sky-high resale prices not long after World Series tickets went on sale.

Separately, the new Quebec legislation would also introduce new rules for companies that offer subscription services. Businesses would have to offer an easily accessible “unsubscribe” button for clients. 

“We can all agree that it’s not normal to have to navigate a digital labyrinth to unsubscribe from a service you no longer want,” Jolin-Barrette said. 

Businesses that offer free or discount trials would also have to inform clients of the new price they will be paying in the days before the trial ends. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 2, 2025. 

– By Maura Forrest in Montreal