As U2 [ tickets ] dives into an intense rehearsal schedule at Vancouver's GM Place, online reports suggest that an official announcement of their fall tour dates is imminent.

The band will announce their fall leg of tour dates this week and make some changes to their pre-sale system for those shows, according to weekend announcements emailed to U2 fan club members at posted at the band's official website, U2.com.

The new round of dates will follow the European leg of the band's Vertigo tour, which currently ends Aug. 14 in Lisbon, Portugal, though dates in Europe continue to be added through this weekend to accommodate ticket demand.

In an email sent to U2.com fan club members and subsequently posted on the message board at U2.com as well as several fan sites, members were told, "On Monday the new North American dates for U2's Vertigo//2005 tour will be announced. The tour will stay in North America right up to the end of 2005." The email also promised that changes have been made to the pre-sale process, giving subscribers to U2's longtime fan club Propaganda a head start on pre-sale access. A similar statement was posted as an alert on the site's home page Sunday morning.

The band is expected to travel to Australia and Japan following the new North American leg.

According to various press reports, U2 is spending much of March rehearsing at Vancouver's GM Place, where they're expected to cross paths with B. B. King as he plays the city's Orpheum Theatre on March 20th. The band has announced plans to record a duet with King for his next release, returning the favor for King's guest shot in U2's 1988 film "Rattle and Hum," which produced a 1989 hit single from their collaboration on "When Love Comes to Town."

The band will also take part in March 14's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony in New York, where Bruce Springsteen will give their induction speech. Bono inducted Springsteen into the hall in 1999.