[randomraccoon]

Planet Money has done an excellent episode on this - https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2013/06/25/195641030/epis.... While I broadly agree with this, I would say that scalpers can actually provide a service of exchanging money for time and convenience. For example, you may have a free or cheap concert that sells out extremely quickly, but with scalpers, those with lots of money can always get a ticket. Much of the economy is built on the similar concept of arbitrage, where someone buys something cheaply and sells it for a markup to those who lack the ability or knowledge to get it from the seller's source.

That said, scalpers in particular seem to cause a whole lot more harm than good in general. As the above podcast addresses, it's a very difficult problem to solve systemically if you are intentionally undervaluing your goods.

[swagasaurus-rex]

Sounds like an oxymoron. Like hoarding toilet paper, gasoline, water during times of emergency, it limits the true supply.

You could argue the “true price” is what the scalpers charge (who will stop drinking water when the prices skyrocket?).

But in reality they squeeze the supply to create artificial scarcity. Any economist knows this is market manipulation.

[ketzo]

> For example, you may have a free or cheap concert that sells out extremely quickly, but with scalpers, those with lots of money can always get a ticket.

But how do you square that with scalpers causing the tickets to sell out so quickly? I mean, they're the ones creating their own market. They're not really providing a service if they're the ones creating the annoying need for the service in the first place.

[summm]

Then just don't pay the inflated price and don't go to the event?

[ketzo]

I'm sort of trying to propose a situation where 1) the price doesn't get inflated and 2) I get to go to the event.

Obviously, yes, if I am mad about scalpers' prices, I have the option to not pay them. I would like to go the event, though.