Boston - StubHub, an online marketplace for event tickets owned by eBay, has been ordered by a judge to turn over the names of 13,000 customers who bought or sold New England Patriots tickets to the team, which prohibits sales of its tickets for more than $2 over their face value, the Boston Globe reported.

Massachusetts has a rigid anti-scalping law that the Patriots have used to enforce its policy, sometimes revoking season tickets of those it finds made sales in violation of the law.

Other pro sports teams actively encourage secondary ticket sales with no such limitations, and have even partnered with sites that facilitate the transactions, taking a percentage of sales from resold tickets.

StubHub was ordered to turn over the names, addresses and phone numbers of Patriots ticket buyers and sellers after Superior Court Judge Allan Van Gestel rejected an appeal of his order lodged by the company.

"The Patriots have said that they intend to use the identities of the purchasers and sellers not only for this case, but also for its own other allegedly legitimate uses, such as canceling season tickets of 'violators' or reporting to authorities those customers that they deem to be in violation of the Massachusetts antiscalping law," van Gestel wrote.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/23ba9e (Boston Globe)

http://www.patriots.com/stadium/index.cfm?ac=TicketSales

http://www.stubhub.com