Dylan Takes On Touts

Bob Dylan is taking an old fashioned approach to beat touts at his forthcoming show in San Francisco.

The legendary songwriter will not sell tickets in advance of his show at the Warfield in San Francisco, and will instead sell tickets for cash only on the door on the day of the gig itself with a one ticket per person limit. There will be no booking / admin fee and tickets will cost $60 (£39). Fans can start queuing for tickets no earlier than noon on the day of the concert (25 August). Doors open at 5.30pm and you have to enter the venue when you buy the ticket.

"Given the state of touring and how fees have escalated, it was a real breath of fresh air to do something very consumer oriented by eliminating all ticketing charges," said David Lefkowitz, a representative for promotion company Goldenvoice in a statement. "It's almost a throwback to another time."

We will see on 26 August whether people were happy with the system, but it could be that after years of barcodes, paperless tickets, ID requirements, scanners and various other tout-beating systems that the best way to destroy the secondary market may turn out to be the simplest.

What do you think about Dylan’s idea? Would you want to stand outside a venue for 5 hours only for it to sell out before you get in? Or is this old fashioned method of selling tickets also the best?