Free tickets for Jackson memorial to be issued through Internet

LOS ANGELES, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Fans must register at staplescenter.com to get free tickets to late pop star Michael Jackson's public memorial service at downtown Los Angeles' Staples Center, Organizers said on Friday.

There will be a total of 11,000 tickets for the 20,000-seat Staples Center and another 6,500 tickets for an overflow crowd at the nearby Nokia Theater, where the event will be simulcast on large video screens, said AEG President and CEO Tim Leiweke.

Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine speaks on Michale Jackson's memorial during a press conference in Los Angeles, Califonia, the United States, July 4, 2009. Fans must register at staplescenter.com to get one of the 17,500 free tickets to late pop star Michael Jackson's public memorial service, slated at downtown Los Angeles' Staples Center on July 7, Organizers said on Friday. (Xinhua/Qi Heng)

Fans have until 6 p.m. Saturday to register at the website, and a computer program will randomly select 8,750 names to receive two tickets for one venue or the other, Leiweke told a press conference.

AEG, which owns Staples Center, is organizing the public memorial service for Jackson, who died last week at a Los Angeles hospital.

Organizers also said there will be no funeral procession as had been rumored, and provided no details on the family's plans for a private service for the pop star.

The area around Staples Center and Nokia Theater will be blocked off by police for the event, and there will be no outside broadcast in or around Staples Center, they said.