Other restricted businesses: Event ticket sale

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We restrict certain kinds of businesses from advertising with us to prevent users from being exploited, even if individual businesses appear to comply with our other policies. Based on our own continuous reviews, and feedback from users, regulators, and consumer protection authorities, we occasionally identify products or services that are prone to abuse. If we feel that certain kinds of businesses pose an unreasonable risk to user safety or user experience, then we may limit or stop related ads from running.

An icon showing the Certification required for Financial Services. Businesses that sell event tickets are allowed to advertise through Google Ads, after obtaining confirmation of eligibility from Google using this form. To obtain confirmation of eligibility, businesses may need to meet specific destination ad requirements.

Below, you’ll find the following:

  • Definition of business models: You’ll need to identify the business model you belong to, in order to determine the requirements you need to meet to be eligible to run ads.
  • Destination requirements by business model
  • Ad requirements by business model
Note: Authorized Buyers and Display & Video 360 accounts that engage in ticket resale don’t need to submit a request for eligibility confirmation but will still be subject to the destination requirements described below.
Violations of the policies below will not lead to immediate account suspension without prior warning. A warning will be issued, at least 7 days, prior to any suspension of your account. Learn more about suspended accounts.

 

Definition of business models

  • Primary provider: The event owner, organizer, or venue that is initially selling the ticket, or a ticket seller that has been authorized to do so on their behalf, via a contractual agreement. The tickets, in either case, may not have been sold or allocated previously.
  • Reseller: Businesses that resell tickets which have already been allocated or sold in the primary marketplace. A reseller or resale marketplace determines the price of the tickets (which may be above or below the face value) and any additional applicable taxes, or service charges, or fees. Requirements for resellers also apply to marketplaces that put resellers in touch with ticket buyers.
  • Event-associated group: Any artist, tour, team, league, venue, and similar event or group on behalf of whom tickets are sold.
  • Ticket aggregator: Any site which aggregates ticket prices from other reseller sites, but does not conduct any ticket sales on their own site.
Note:
  • In France and French territories, event ticket sale is restricted to eligible primary providers.
  • If your business promotes resale inventory, regardless of whether you act as a primary provider for other inventory, you will be considered a reseller for the purposes of this policy.


Destination requirements by business model

If you sell or link to sites for resale tickets, you must meet some or all of the following destination requirements. Note that if you’re a primary provider, you don’t have any destination requirements, unless you link to a site that sells resale tickets.

Below is a summary of each destination requirement, depending on your business model, and what your ad is promoting.

Summary

URL domain

If you sell or link to resale tickets, you can have the event-associated group’s name in your URL domain only if you provide one of the following:

  • A contract or legal documentation indicating affiliation or partnership between your company and the event-associated group
  • A letter on company letterhead signed by an attorney or an executive at your company, attesting to having affiliation or partnership with the event-associated group

Disclosures

To protect customers from scams and prevent potential confusion, if you sell resale tickets, you must clearly disclose on your website or app that:

  • You are a resale market and aren’t the primary provider of the tickets
  • Your ticket prices may be higher than face value (that is, the price offered by the primary provider)

This disclosure should be easily visible and clearly explained in the top 20% (above the fold) of any destination when reached via an ad. This disclosure must not be provided in a closable or hideable notification format, and the font must be equal to or bigger than the majority of the text on the page.

Tax/fee breakdown

If you sell resale tickets, you must provide a price tax/fee breakdown during the checkout process, and before the customer provides payment information. The breakdown should show the specific costs added, such as taxes, and any fees that have been added.

By business model

Primary provider

Advertiser description What ads promote Disclosures (website) Tax/fee breakdown (website)
You're a primary provider only Primary tickets for an event Not required Not required
You're a primary provider but your homepage or event page links to a reseller's site Primary tickets for an event Not required on your website Not required on your website
Your website only, or resale tickets for an event Required only on linked reseller's landing page Required on linked reseller's website

Reseller

Advertiser description What ads promote Disclosures Tax/fee breakdown
You're an "authorized" or "official" reseller for specific events Specific events Required Required
Your website only, or events you're not the official reseller for Required Required
Specific US pro sports leagues for which you are official reseller Required Required
You're a reseller only and not “authorized” or “official” Your website or resale tickets for an event Required Required
You're a reseller that a) is also a primary provider for specific events, b) links to primary providers, or c) links to other resellers Primary tickets for an event Required on the landing page, unless it shows only information related to primary tickets Not Required
Your website only, or resale tickets for an event Required Required

Event-associated group

Advertiser description What ads promote Disclosures Tax/fee breakdown
You're an event-associated group and your website links to a primary provider for your ticketing Primary tickets for an event Not required on your website Not required on your website
You're an event-associated group and your website links to a reseller for your ticketing Your website only Required only on linked reseller's landing page
 
Required only on linked reseller's website

You're an event-associated group and your website links to both a primary provider and a reseller for your ticketing
Your website only Required only on linked reseller's landing page Required on linked reseller's website

Ticket aggregator

Advertiser description Disclosures Tax/fee breakdown
You're a ticket aggregator and link to resellers. You don't sell any tickets on your website. Required on your site and linked reseller's website Required on linked reseller's website

 

Ad requirements by business model

If you’re not a primary provider of tickets, you must meet some or all of the following ad requirements.

Following is a summary of each ad requirement, depending on your business model, and what your ad is promoting.

Summary

Use of the term “official”

If your business model sometimes qualifies as a reseller or ticket aggregator, you may not imply that you’re only a primary provider of tickets by using words like "official” in your ads, or in reference to your website (for example, “official providers for EventName tickets” or "official TicketReseller site").

However, if you have a legal agreement with an event-associated group specifying that you can refer to yourself as an official reseller for that group, or an official primary seller for that group, you’ll be allowed to use the term “official” in your ad, as long as you meet the following requirements:

  • You must provide a letter from the relevant event-associated group which explicitly states that you’re allowed to use the "official" designation in reference to the group for your event ticket promotions.
  • You can use “official” in one of the following phrases, followed by the name of the event-associated group (for example, “Official Fan to Fan Marketplace for [group name]”).

If the agreement is that you can refer to yourself as an official primary seller for an event-associated group

  • Official Primary Ticketing Partner
  • Official Primary Ticket Marketplace
  • Official Primary Ticket Provider
  • Official Primary Market Ticketing Partner
  • Official Primary Market Ticketing Provider
  • Official Primary Ticket Sales
  • Official Primary Ticket Seller

If the agreement is that you can refer to yourself as an official reseller for an event-associated group

  • Official Fan to Fan Ticket Marketplace
  • Official Fan to Fan Marketplace
  • Official Fan to Fan Secondary Marketplace
  • Official Secondary Ticketing Partner
  • Official Secondary Ticket Marketplace
  • Official Secondary Ticket Provider
  • Official Secondary Market Ticketing Partner
  • Official Secondary Market Ticketing Provider
  • Official Fan Ticket Marketplace
  • Official Ticket Exchange/Marketplace
  • Official Ticket Resale Marketplace
  • Official Reseller

Display URL restrictions

To help ensure customers aren’t misled about your relationship to the event-associated group, if you’re a reseller or ticket aggregator, you cannot have any post-domain paths or subdomains in your display URL.

By business model

Reseller

Advertiser description What ads promote Use of terms like "official" Display URL restrictions
You're a reseller, only Your website or resale tickets for an event Not allowed Display URL cannot contain subdomain or post-domain path
You're a reseller that a) is also a primary provider for specific events, b) links to primary providers or c) links to other resellers Primary tickets for an event Not allowed Display URL cannot contain subdomain or post-domain path
Your website only, or resale tickets for an event Not allowed Display URL cannot contain subdomain or post-domain path

Event-associated group

Advertiser description What ads promote Use of terms like "official" Display URL restrictions
You're an event-associated group and your website links to a primary provider for your ticketing Primary tickets for an event Allowed None
You're an event-associated group and your website links to a reseller for your ticketing Your website only Allowed None

Ticket aggregator

Advertiser description Use of terms like "official" Display URL restrictions
You're a ticket aggregator and link to resellers. You don't sell any tickets on your site. Not allowed Display URL cannot contain subdomain or post-domain path

Options to fix ad violations

If you see your ads disapproved for Event Ticket Sale, please follow one of the two options below.

Request confirmation of eligibility

Businesses that sell event tickets are allowed to advertise through Google Ads after applying for and obtaining confirmation of eligibility from Google. Check eligibility criteria here and apply for confirmation of eligibility using this form.

Appeal policy decision

If you've fixed your destination or believe that we've made an error, appeal the policy decision directly from your Google Ads account to request for a review. After we confirm that the destination is compliant, we can approve your ads.

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