http://sg.news.yahoo.com/060111/1/3xt48.htmlA new mobile phone ticketing system being launched in Singapore this year promises to send show-goers their tickets immediately in text message format.
SISTIC, which says it handles 90 percent of all ticketed events in the city-state, is introducing mobile ticketing or m-ticketing as an alternative for users to buy and receive their tickets through mobile phones.
The mobile tickets are to be introduced in April and expected to be available for all shows by the end of the year.
The mobile tickets are to be introduced in April and expected to be available for all shows by the end of the year.
"The decision to introduce m-tickets is in line with our mission to revolutionize the traditional ticketing business model," said Jennifer Pok, general manager for SISTIC.
Pok said the introduction of m-tickets will boost tickets sales and benefit consumers.
"In a survey conducted last year... we found that 70 percent of the 2000 respondents indicated they would choose m-ticketing," Pok said.
The technology works by enabling users to photograph a barcode on a concert poster and immediately access a booking page by mobile phone. After booking the tickets, the user gets a text message with another barcode, and this text message acts as a ticket which is scanned at the venue for verification.
"We hope to be able to phase out paper tickets eventually, but how long it would take would depend on the adoption rate by both consumers as well as industry players," said Pok.
The first of its kind in Southeast Asia, the digital ticketing technology will feature encryption on the bar-coded tickets and digital signatures on all applications. Additional security features include real-time validation at the venue to prevent duplicate use of the m-ticket, the company said.
