Ticketmaster working to avoid Taylor Swift repeat with Beyonce tour tickets

Beyonce is all set to embark on herfirst tour in six years! And,Ticketmaster is working toensure that they do not repeat last year's Taylor Swift debacle while selling tickets for the 'Drunk InLove' singer's concerts.

Ticketmaster, whose sales processes have angered bands and fans for decades, came under fire in November last year when frustrated Taylor Swift fans battled its website, often unsuccessfully, to buy tickets for her first tour in five years.

The company, which is owned by Live Nation (LYV.N), revealed on their website that they are working to verify fans, filter out bots, and temper fans' expectations that they will get tickets for Beyonce's Renaissance tour when sales start next week.

"Demand for this tour is expected to be high. If there is more demand than there are tickets available, a lottery-style selection process will determine which Verified Fans get a unique access code and which are placed on the waitlist," Ticketmaster said on its website. The access code, the company said, "does not guarantee tickets."

On Thursday, Ticketmaster tweeted that the demand to register for a chance to buy tickets for concerts in the nine cities in Group A, whose registration closed on Friday, exceeded the number of tickets by more than 800%. Second shows were added in seven cities, including Houston, Atlanta and Toronto.

Beyonce last toured in 2016. Shereleased her chart-topping and critically acclaimed album 'Renaissance',her seventh studio album, at the end of July. The album is in the running to be named album of the year at this year's Grammy Awards on Sunday.

The North American leg of Beyonce's tour opens in Toronto on July 8 and closes in New Orleans on September 27, according to the Ticketmaster website. The first tickets go on sale on Monday.

After loud complaints from Taylor Swift fans, the company blamed more than 3.5 billion requests from fans, bots and scalpers for its overwhelmed website. Last month, Joe Berchtold, president and chief financial officer of Live Nation, told a US Senate Judiciary Committee hearing that he has apologised to fans.

(With inputs from agencies)

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