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Friday July 25, 2008

Organisers of the Academy Awards have won the right to know the name of a ticket tout who tried to sell two exclusive invites to this year’s (Mar08) ceremony for $5,000 (GBP2,500).

A Los Angeles judge ordered advertising website Craigslist.com to reveal the name of the seller – identified only as Daniel – so that Oscar bosses could take legal action.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will use the information to launch a case against several individuals and companies who have been caught selling the invites.

Oscar invitees are forbidden to sell their tickets because of the annual event’s high-security restrictions. The rules state that anyone using another person’s invite to gain access to the ceremony is a ‘trespasser’.

The Academy’s lawyer, David Quinto, says, “If you don’t know who’s inside the theatre, it’s very difficult to provide security.”