Live Nation Italy has joined CTS Eventim-owned TicketOne in slating the Italian ‘named-ticket’ law, which the firm said caused major queues and delayed Tuesday’s Sting concert by over an hour.
The 10,000-capacity Sting performance at the Mediolanum Forum near Milan was the live entertainment giant’s first production since the nominal ticket law came into practice on July 1, requiring every ticket for shows over 5,000-capacity to be personalised and for ID to match it.
Following the debacle on Tuesday, Live Nation made clear its “utmost opposition” to the legislation, which TicketOne has previously called “ineffective” and “highly disruptive.”
Many fans were turned away at the gates of the Sting gig after being told they had inadequate identification, or that ID didn’t match the name on the ticket.
A statement provided by Live Nation, said: “Live Nation therefore reiterates its utmost opposition to a law that penalises the public and punishes organisers, putting the live entertainment industry, which is a great cultural and economic resource for our country, at risk.
“As demonstrated by other sectors, such as sports, and football in particular, we do not need named tickets to combat ticket touting. In fact, for [Sting], there were still copious amounts of tickets available on the secondary ticketing platforms.”
Assomusica, the Italian concert promoters’ association, whose president, Vincenzo Spera, said that one of the main concerns about the introduction of the new regulations is the “inconvenience” it causes.
He added: “At an event of this magnitude [the Sting concert], where the spectators, being a weekday, arrive directly after work, huge delays are inevitable due to the need to carry out the checks required by law.”
Spera added that Assomusica hopes the Italian parliament “will review the law by the end of the year”, taking into account “the many inconveniences and inefficiencies that occurred” at the Sting concert.
Image: Piotr Drabik
Share this