It will certainly make buying beer and merchandise at gigs more orderly
Two weeks ago, Singapore’s inaugural Ultra festival — a renowned electronic dance music event — was smacked with bad press because attendees had to endure hour-long queues at food-and-drink stalls. This is a persistent problem that plagues most live events; no amount of logistical planning can circumvent this issue completely.
In countries such as the US, there is a growing trend of event organisers leveraging on tech to make the event experience smoother. Some offer RFID bracelets to attendees, which enables them to make cashless purchases by syncing up their credit/debit card accounts to the device to top up money. Some use QR code to eliminate queue line at merchandise booth, like Sidestep, which had just received investment from the diva Beyoncé.
In Southeast Asia, a Singapore-based startup called Pouch is offering this convenience to event-goers. It has recently integrated RFID ticketing with events such as Geek on a Beach and a Michael Learns To Rock’s concert in Philippines.
But wristbands poses a caveat: what happens if the attendee tops up too much money? What will happen to the balance/leftovers in the wristbands?
Most wristbands are a one-time-use-only accessory. Attendees can opt to get in line to have their money refunded, or toss the wristbands away, forfeiting the balance.
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The APAC arm of European e-payments solution company Sandpiper Digital Payments AG wants to solve this problem by leveraging on app technology instead off RFID.
It has developed iGo, the event discovery and ticketing app, which according to James Kane, Director of Sandpiper Digital Payments Asia (SDPA), “eliminates the long-standing ‘barriers to exit’ of funds and keeps users connected for further promotions. This helps the ecosystem build a database of loyal customers and drastically reduces the cost of acquiring new ones.”
For example, with the app, event attendees can use their credits when they proceed to designated after-party venues for food and beverage specials.
Beyond on-site cashless solutions, iGo will also provide event organisers with full ticketing solutions. This means iGo is able to offer the full suite of event payment solutions, from pre-event to post-event, all on one platform.
To date, two lifestyle events during the Singapore Grand Prix period, and startup event Slush Singapore have used the app. And attendees can expect this technology to roll out at more events in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, soon.
You see, the Sandpiper Asia team is actually an acqui-hire from GoGORILLA, a Singapore-based RFID ticketing and digital payments solutions provider for live events.
It has been the white label support behind many major events including Road To Ultra Singapore, Road To Ultra BKK, SingJazz, Singapore Yacht Show, Savour Food Festival, Future Music Festival, NYE countdown at the Float, Illumi Nation Music festival , Rainforest Music Festival, and Creatory.
Thus, buying overpriced beer, hot dogs and band merchandise in the future will become a lot less cumbersome, as long as your smartphone is charged.
And in case you were wondering why, if GoGORILLA backed Road to Ultra Singapore and Road To Ultra BKK, did this year’s Ultra Singapore not have the app, the answer is simple — Ultra Singapore’s organisers simply decided not to go with Sandpiper.
Hindsight is always 20/20, huh?
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Image Credit: iGo
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