Latest news with #RestaurantReservationAnti-PiracyAct
Eater
23-05-2025
- Business
- Eater
Illinois Third-Party Reservation Ban Bill Awaits Gov. Pritzker's Approval
Illinois Senators have approved a proposal that would ban the sale of restaurant reservations by third parties (the black market). The bill, which was passed by the House in April, now awaits Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's signature. The Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act was unanimously passed with 58 votes on Thursday, May 22. The Illinois bill is modeled after a New York policy signed into law in December. The measure seemingly targets Appointment Trader, a website where users sell reservations to trendy restaurants. Lawmakers contend users deploy bots on sites like OpenTable and Resy to scoop up desirable times before customers can book tables. Illinois State Rep. Margaret Croke says the difficulty in finding reservations at restaurants like Armitage Alehouse led her to introduce the legislation in February in Springfield. Appointment Trader was mentioned in a press release sent by Croke, while a release from the bill's sponsor in the Senate, Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, included words of support from Illinois Restaurant Association President and CEO Sam Toia. Appointment Trader founder Jonas Frey previously told Eater that his company already takes the necessary steps to keep users employing bots off the site. Third-party sales complicate matters if no one purchases a reservation posted for sale online; a restaurant is left with an empty table that appears reserved. No-shows mean wasted labor and food costs that hurt restaurants' bottom lines. The issue became noteworthy after a New Yorker story shared the tale of a Brown University student who made $80,000 by selling reservations. No-shows have long been an issue for restaurants and have led to the rise of prepaid meals. The business practice was pioneered by Tock, a reservation platform founded in 2014 in Chicago as a way for Michelin-starred Alinea to book tables and ensure customers took on the financial risk of reserving. Diners were skeptical about prepaying for a meal. But in 2025, it's more of an accepted practice with restaurants looking for ways to mitigate rising costs five years after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, Tock was sold to American Express for $400 million. There's money to be made in the world of reservations. The New York Times reports how the platforms have been throwing money at restaurants, hoping they'll join their listings. American Express also owns Resy, and Visa has a partnership with OpenTable in which certain credit card holders gain exclusive access to hot restaurants. Frey from Appointment Trader argues that lobbyists from credit card companies have been behind the surge in efforts to make his website illegal. Beyond Illinois, there are also bills in California, Florida, and Nevada. The credit companies disagree that they're the catalysts behind the measures, saying that they're merely protecting the interests of their partner restaurants. Sign up for our newsletter.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State lawmakers take aim at ‘black market' restaurant reservations
Several states are taking aim at online platforms that allow customers to purchase hard-to-get and pricey dining reservations — sometimes without restaurants' knowledge or consent. (Getty Images) Lawmakers in several states are pushing bills to prohibit unauthorized sales of hard-to-get restaurant reservations. Proposed bills in California, Florida, Illinois and Louisiana take aim at online platforms such as Appointment Trader that allow diners to sell coveted reservations on the open market — sometimes without a restaurant's knowledge. In Louisiana, the issue gained attention surrounding February's Super Bowl, when one customer paid more than $2,000 for a table at a top New Orleans restaurant, the Louisiana Illuminator reported. Proponents of the platforms say these services provide customer flexibility and can boost restaurant business. But restaurant groups have opposed their entry into the market, arguing that they undermine the dining experience and can leave restaurants with empty tables. The Illinois and Louisiana legislation follows New York state's Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act, which went into effect in February. The law aims at curbing the 'black market' in which reservations are scooped up as soon as they go live, Gothamist reported. The Louisiana Restaurant Association asked state lawmakers to file a similar measure. Wendy Waren, spokesperson for the association, told the Louisiana Illuminator that online platforms are selling reservations without restaurant's permission or knowledge. If no one purchases reservations, tables can sit empty, preventing legitimate customers from getting a reservation, Waren said. 'It creates artificial scarcity,' Waren said. 'It's like somebody's hijacking the process.' Someone paid $2,138 for a reservation at a French Quarter restaurant. Should this be outlawed? The Republican-sponsored bill, which would require platforms to have contracts with restaurants, is pending before the state House Commerce Committee. A similar bill just won unanimous approval from the Illinois state House and now moves onto the state Senate for consideration. The legislation would require a written agreement between restaurants and reservation platforms and would create a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation of the new law. State Rep. Margaret Croke, the Democrat who sponsored the bill, characterized the move as a 'commonsense' measure to protect restaurants and consumers alike. 'At a time when local restaurants are operating with extremely tight margins and working to recover from the impacts of COVID-19, they shouldn't have to deal with third-party services snatching up their reservations and selling them at a premium, which leads to no-shows and confusion that only hurts their bottom lines,' Croke said in a statement. Democrats and Republicans take on soda, but they're using different tactics The laws do not affect a restaurant's ability to contract with reservation platforms such as OpenTable and Resy, which have applauded state crackdowns on other third-party sites. Jonas Frey, who founded Appointment Trader, told the New York Times he launched the platform to help people get tables for a 'fair market price.' Last summer, he acknowledged that computer bots making reservations and then selling them were an issue, and said he had tried to prevent them from exploiting the website. But he said his website had only become popular because it was already difficult to get a reservation, especially in the New York City area. Stateline reporter Kevin Hardy can be reached at khardy@ SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Illinois House passes bill to ban unauthorized restaurant reservations
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — A bill that would ban 'black market' restaurant reservations in Illinois has passed out of the House. HB2456, or the Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act, would prevent third party services from listing, advertising, promoting, or selling restaurant reservations without a written agreement. 'At a time when local restaurants are operating with extremely tight margins and working to recover from the impacts of COVID-19, they shouldn't have to deal with third-party services snatching up their reservations and selling them at a premium, which leads to no-shows and confusion that only hurts their bottom lines,' said State Representative Margaret Croke, who introduced the bill. Services like OpenTable and Resy have agreements with restaurants for reservations, but services like Appointment Trader operate without the consent of local businesses, relying on bots to make reservations that are then sold to consumers at a premium. New York passed legislation in 2024 to regulate the platforms; California, Florida, and Nevada are considering similar measures. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
