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Aussie Shorts
The Rolling Stones launched the new Adelaide Oval as they kicked off their Australian run for Frontier Touring Oct. 25. The Stones played to a 54,115-strong crowd of which 12,000 came from outside South Australia and injected A$7.2 million ($6.34 million) into the local economy.
Tourism Minister Leon Bignell said the buzz about the Stones put a focus on the venue and its state-of-the-art facilities. He said the entertainment industry was highly impressed with the venue and more major events were being negotiated.
MTV Australia’s focus on dance music in the past year sees it launch a local version of international club tour series Club MTV. It hits January with each show covered on the newly launched MTV Dance channel.
APRA AMCOS became the world’s first performing rights organisation to use Pioneer Corporation’s new web service product KUVO to enhance royalty distribution for music played by DJs in nightclubs, venues and festivals. After an eight-month investigation into “drip pricing” by ticket agencies, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission announced Oct. 23 that progressively unveiling charges for online ticket transactions must stop, and all compulsory fees stated from the outset. Ticketek Australia and Ticketmaster Australia responded they had already instituted changes.
According to a new economic impact survey by RPS Australia, this year’s Splendour In The Grass and Falls Music & Arts Byron festivals – both at North Byron Parklands – generated $41.4 million in NSW’s Northern Rivers region. They also created 308 full-time jobs.
Self-service ticketing and global events platform Eventbrite launched a free app for promoters and venues. Eventbrite Neon allows mobile devices to check in attendees, monitor real-time sales data and process customer requests including ticket reissues, cancellations, and refunds.
The first round of 180 artists showcasing at SXSW 2015 included Australia’s The Church, Angus & Julia Stone, Ball Park Music, Courtney Barnett, Bloods, The Gooch Palms, The Twerps, Luluc and Demi Louise.