The Obama fundraising concert featuring Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen that will be held in Manhattan next week is a big hit for online brokers. The tickets for the Obama concert entitled “Change Rocks” are available online at prices ranging from $500 to a staggering $25,000.

Buying the tickets to the fund raising concert may be illegal. Both the buyer and seller would violate federal campaign finance laws. Paying a fund raising ticket is a direct political contribution to the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

"If they get straw men, say, to buy tickets for them and then reimburse them for those tickets and sell them at a profit, that would certainly raise legal issues. These tickets are political contributions. They are not commercial transactions," said Kenneth Gross, a former enforcement chief at the Federal Election Commission.

The most expensive online tickets at the concert for Senator Barack Obama were two tickets of $25,000 each posted on Craigslist. The most expensive tickets being sold directly by the Obama campaign are of $10,000 “lounge” seats.

Let’s be clear about this. It’s ok to resell tickets for the Obama fundraiser if individuals are doing it. But, as Mr. Gross said, if a company such as a ticket brokerage buys the ticked or one of its employees buys it and is being reimbursed by the company or someone else, it’s illegal.

Obama’s campaign said it plans to enlist a company that will track who is buying tickets and check the names at the door.