The following report is courtesy of Allison Reitz from Ticketnews.com:

In less than eight hours, doors will open for the first concert of a tour that has been about seven years in the making. Tonight, October 28, rock icons AC/DC will kick off their much-anticipated Black Ice World Tour at the Wachovia Arena in Wilkes Barre, PA.

While fans of the Aussie rock crew look forward to a night of music that spans the years, the ticket industry looks towards the trailblazing band's use of paperless ticketing for seats purchased through the fan club. Ticketmaster announced the new process earlier in the year as Tom Waits's U.S. tour became the first to reserve seats solely through the paperless process. The system requires the original purchaser to present a credit card and ID at the door of the venue, rather than gaining entry with a "hard ticket."

The process was successfully implemented in the UK for Metallica's European kick-off at the O2 Arena in London. However, the fact that ownership of tickets cannot be transferred has proved to be a problem for some fans who find themselves suddenly unable to attend an event.

As fans line up for the event tonight, TicketNews will be live on the scene to talk with concert goers and venue employees alike about the use of paperless ticketing for AC/DC's tour. Check in with us tomorrow for a report on the process, as the band continues on the North American tour circuit with an October 30 concert at Allstate Arena in Chicago, IL.

The band announced their plans to return to the stage with a full-scale world tour in early September, slowly revealing plans for a North American trek booked into 2009 before heading overseas to Europe. Opening support for the tour comes from up-and-coming rock band The Answer, which hails from Northern Ireland.