Anti-tout system a success at Waits gig

STRICT NEW anti-touting measures, being used tonight at the first of three concerts by Tom Waits, have been a "huge success" and would be considered for future events, the main ticket agent in the State has said.

A spokesman for Ticketmaster said the organisation would look at the feasibility of applying the measures, insisted on by Waits, to future concerts and other events.

Waits plays with a band he has said "are all multi-instrumentalists and they polka like real men", to an audience of just 3,000 over each of the next three nights in a tented structure, called the Ratcellar, in the Phoenix Park, Dublin.

The new anti-tout measures mean ticketholders must present photo ID - either a passport or a driving licence - matching the name of the purchaser printed on the ticket. Only tickets purchased from Ticketmaster will be valid and all are non-transferable.

A spokeswoman for Aiken Promotions, which is promoting the concerts, said all tickets would be scanned to verify authenticity.

"So far it's worked. No touts have got their hands on any tickets," the spokeswoman said.

Asked whether such measures should be extended to other events, other promoters said they did not want to comment on agreements reached between artists and another organisation.

There appears to be general satisfaction that measures already in place have minimised touting. For most events a person is limited to buying between four and eight tickets to prevent bulk-buying.

Only one transaction with a credit card is allowed for each event. Ticketmaster tracks credit card-use, cancelling second or further transactions on a card for a single event.

Waits's three gigs, part of his Glitter and Doom tour, are his first in Ireland in more than 20 years and follow two nights in Edinburgh, which received standing ovations and ecstatic reviews.

The Ratcellar marquee is located near the Visitor Centre in Phoenix Park. Parking will be allowed at Chesterfield Avenue - Mountjoy Cross to Phoenix Monument, Chesterfield Avenue - Gough roundabout to Phoenix Monument, Furze Road, the Papal Cross and the Zoo car park.

Mobile phones and blackberry devices must be turned off before the gig and no photography is allowed. Ticketholders must be in their seats by 7.30pm. The venue opens at 6.30pm and the show starts at 8pm sharp.

Tickets that went on sale in May sold out in under an hour, but a limited number were released in recent days and were available online last night.

Meanwhile, promoter MCD last night detailed its new measures to combat touts, announcing a gig by The Killers in the Academy, Dublin, on August 20th.

Justin Green of MCD said no tickets would be issued in advance of the event which go on sale this Friday at 9am at €44.90 each.

"People will purchase the tickets but pick them up on the night at the venue," Mr Green said.

"People will have to have valid ID and they'll get a wrist band. No one will get their hands on a ticket in advance so no one can resell them."