Ticketmaster is working on a plan to return to live events for next year. This news comes with the latest reports about a vaccine being in the works by pharmaceutical company Pfizer.
The plan the ticket company is taking on includes using smartphones to verify the vaccination status of fans. It also will show whether or not a fan has tested negative for the coronavirus within a 24 to 72 hour window.
“Here’s how it would work, if approved: After purchasing a ticket for a concert, fans would need to verify that they have already been vaccinated (which would provide approximately one year of COVID-19 protection) or test negative for coronavirus approximately 24 to 72 hours prior to the concert. The length of coverage a test would provide would be governed by regional health authorities — if attendees of a Friday night concert had to be tested 48 hours in advance, most could start the testing process the day before the event. If it was a 24-hour window, most people would likely be tested the same day of the event at a lab or a health clinic,” the outlet explains.
“Once the test was complete, the fan would instruct the lab to deliver the results to their health pass company, like CLEAR or IBM. If the tests were negative, or the fan was vaccinated, the health pass company would verify the attendee’s COVID-19 status to Ticketmaster, which would then issue the fan the credentials needed to access the event. If a fan tested positive or didn’t take a test to verify their status, they would not be granted access to the event. There are still many details to work out, but the goal of the program is for fans to take care of vaccines and testing prior to the concert and not show up hoping to be tested onsite.”
Ticketmaster in this case would not have access to medical records and will only receive verification of whether the fan is good to ago or cleared to attend the event. The data and medical providers status updates will be collected from companies like health pass “in a secure, encrypted way that complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).”
It has not yet been approved by the FDA for third party companies to provide what is needed to supply the vaccination results of fans. Though the very hopeful president of Ticketmaster, Mark Yovich expects it will come through for many reasons, including travel by plane and entry unto theme parks.
“We’re already seeing many third-party health care providers prepare to handle the vetting — whether that is getting a vaccine, taking a test, or other methods of review and approval – which could then be linked via a digital ticket so everyone entering the event is verified. Ticketmaster’s goal is to provide enough flexibility and options that venues and fans have multiple paths to return to events, and is working to create integrations to our API and leading digital ticketing technology as we will look to tap into the top solutions based on what’s green-lit by officials and desired by clients,” he said.
There’s been misreporting. To clarify, Ticketmaster doesn’t set policies on safety/entry requirements. We continue to work with event organizers on all COVID safety measures & it will be up to each event organizer to set future requirements. More info: https://t.co/LpkYF7KIyK
— Ticketmaster Fan Support (@TMFanSupport) November 12, 2020
Update: “There’s been misreporting. To clarify, Ticketmaster doesn’t set policies on safety/entry requirements. We continue to work with event organizers on all COVID safety measures & it will be up to each event organizer to set future requirements,” says Ticketmaster Fan Support on Twitter.
Photo| iStock