Ticketmaster buys Czech ticketing company Ticketpro

Live Nation's ticketing arm Ticketmaster has bought Czech ticketing company Ticketpro, boosting its presence in Central Europe and especially the Czech Republic. Ticketmaster International's Mark Yovich said "Acquiring Ticketpro enables us to better service our clients in Central Europe, while providing a world class service to the many fans in these countries" and Ticketpro chief Serge Grimaux added: "Having started our business in the Czech Republic, Ticketpro has established a proven track record in Central Europe and many emerging markets around the world. Combining this with Ticketmaster's global scale and reach will ensure that Ticketpro continues to provide an even better experience to its current fans, while attracting considerably more. This is an exciting time for the business and the live entertainment industry in this part of the world. For me, it is the end of a ticketing journey which has lasted over 25 years".

Ticketmaster face paperless ticketing claim

A new class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court in New York which alleges that Live Nation and Ticketmaster violated New York state law by offering only paperless ticketing for a Swedish House Mafia event on December 16, 2011. The suit, reported in Ticketnews.com,  seeks damages from Live Nation for consumers who purchased tickets to numerous events in New York

New application for .tickets internet domain aims to safeguard fans

The Dot Tickets organisation is spearheading an ambitious attempt to clamp down on the global multi-billion dollar ticket fraud problem by lodging an application with internet domain registry organisation ICANN to create a new tickets domain .TICKETS which would only be available to sites which meet high standards of consumer protection and security. The idea came about at ILMC 24 in March when technology panel co-chairman Steve Machin realised that an auction of internet domain names could provide the legitimate ticketing industry with a readymade answer to combat online fraud and provide secure and fair sites for fans.

As a result, when ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) announces the names of the expected 2,000 applicants for new domain words today it will include the .tickets application from Machin’s The Dot Tickets Organisation. The concept would allow legitimate ticketing companies to exclusively use a .tickets website, rather than the numerous .com sites that fraudsters can easily dupe people into using. The idea already has the backing of the Music Managers’ Forum whose CEO Jon Webster, comments, “Stamping out fraud in the ticketing industry is a significant challenge for the live entertainment industry and one that the MMF feels strongly about as it has a direct impact on our clients’ customers – the fans of live music. We believe that The Dot Tickets Organisation application and proposal will create a safe, secure and trusted environment online, making it easier for fans to spot scams online and to visit only trusted websites for ticket sales and information.”

Machin adds that is likely other organisations might apply for the .tickets domain name and he is seeking the support of ILMC members to back up the industry’s application ahead of ICANN’s ruling which is expected in January 2013. Anyone wishing to support the .tickets application should contact Machin via  hello@dotTICKETS.org or for further information visit http://www.dotTICKETS.org or http://www.facebook.com/dotTICKETS.


UPDATE (14th June)


5 groups have applied for .tickets - and 8 have applied for .music including Amazon and Google.