MELBOURNE (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Tickets for the first five rows at the Melbourne MCG show, the band's performance at AAMI Stadium in Adelaide and Members Equity Stadium in Perth in 2008 will be auctioned off on Ticketmaster's website to the highest bidder. Starting bids for the tix will be $250 AUD.
According to Ticketmaster, the purpose of this program is two-fold: it opens up the front rows to people who want them instead mere luck of the draw and, they claim, it helps to deter eBay scalping.
"People who really want to get those tickets can buy them through a trusted means, they know they're legitimate. It also keeps the money within the industry." said Ticketmaster spokesman Glenn McGuinness.
While this is a new development in Oz, U.S. consumers have had this system in place since early in 2003. Some critics have asserted that this program amounts to little more than ticket scalping by Ticketmaster.
"It's for die-hard fans, but die-hard fans with money," Paul Cashmere, a columnist on music blog Undercover told the Melbourne Herald Sun. "It's disadvantaging the people who don't have the money to play the auction game." – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
