Tim Minchin To Take On Scalpers In Australian-first Initiative Ahead Of 2019 Tour

Having announced his first national tour in over half a decade today, Tim Minchin has thrown his hat in the ring in the fight against scalpers ahead of the 2019 run. 

The WA comic and musician has implemented the Ticketmaster Verified Fan initiative for his tour, which helps artists get tickets into the hands of their fans first. 

Registration is open now for fans and closes at 5pm this Sunday (2 September), before general public tickets go on sale on 6 September; click here to register.

Ticketmaster Verified Fan has supported over 80 tours globally, including Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen.

It launched in Australia earlier this year by Snow Patrol for a special one-off show in Melbourne, however Minchin's tour will be the first time it is used on a national run.

"Doing a thing called Verified Fan, now this is a system that’s been put in place which seems to be working for other real artists, where fans can register to become a Verified Fan which is a way of stopping scalpers buying loads of tickets and selling them to poor, desperate people for way too much money," Minchin said.

Meanwhile, Ticketmaster Australia Managing Director, Maria O'Connor, said in a statement given to The Music today. "Ticketmaster’s innovative fan-first Verified Fan technology has had huge success globally in limiting the secondary ticketing market.

"We are committed to working with artists and promoters in Australia and New Zealand to ensure tickets are going into the hands of genuine fans, and not bots or scalpers."

For details on Minchin's 2019 Australian tour, head over to theGuide or scroll down.