TAKING ON THE TOUTS

As the Glastonbury Music Festival once again tightens up its ticketing procedures in the fight against ticket touts, DHP, the premier live music and club operator in the Midlands, is taking its own stand against the problem.  

DHP, which owns and operates venues with a cumulative nightly capacity of 4,000 and promotes and hosts more than 500 shows annually, has worked with some of the world’s leading performers and promoted various events across the country. From Nottingham Arena to the Shepherds Bush Empire, DHP has been responsible for record attendances and sell-out tours on a regular basis.    

Managing director of DHP, George Akins, says combating the ticket touts is not an easy battle, but is one they will continue to fight. “The growth of sites such as Ebay has transformed touting from a single man on the corner into big business. Touting is now a serious problem, covering not only the sale of tickets at vastly inflated prices but also instances where people pay for tickets and never receive them.”   

New systems installed by DHP allow staff to trace the buyers of tickets that end up on internet sites and unauthorised ticket agents and stop them making future bookings. Where possible, the tickets will not even be sent out, preventing them from being sold on.  In addition, tickets for popular events such as the Manic Street Preachers, have been limited to minimise the likelihood of touts buying in bulk. Purchasers can buy just four tickets each over the phone or two each in person.

“It’s also about the security measures in place on individual tickets,” added George. “More than 200 counterfeit tickets ended up on the market before The Killers’ gig in 2006. Because of the way our tickets are produced, we managed to spot all of them and now make sure that our ticket stock is changed regularly, as an additional deterrent.” T

ickets for popular gigs or events may be resold for up to ten times their original face value. The Klaxons are due to play at DHP-owned venue Rock City in May. Originally on sale for £10.50 each, tickets on Ebay are already almost double.   Similarly, prices for Maximo Park are more than 50 percent higher.    

ENDS

For further PR information contact Kathryn Greenwood or Kate Downs at Eden PR on 0115 852 4717, fax 0115 950 9175 or email Kathryn@edenpr.co.uk  or kate@edenpr.co.uk

Notes DHP runs Rock City along with The Rescue Rooms, Stealth and The Social which are other smaller music venues around Nottingham City Centre, with a total nightly capacity of 4000 people. DHP is the premier live music and club operator in the Midlands, with more than 500 shows per year in its own venues with club nights five nights per week and two public bars open seven nights a week.