Credit Union Centre is moving to paperless ticketing in 2010 to eliminate ticket scalping.

Here's how it works:  Customers must purchase tickets with a credit card and they are not issued a paper ticket at that time.

When they go to the venue on event night they will have to show their credit card and personal photo identification to get a seat locater slip.

Ken Wood is the Executive Director at CUC.

He admits the paperless system is not without issues because it won't work for teenagers, who don't have a credit card, or for ticket gift giving.

Wood says how tickets are sold is entirely up to promoters of events and some might choose only to sell premium seats this way and open up the rest to the usual type of sales.

The first time the system will be used at CUC will be in April for the John Mayer concert when 16 hundred premium seats will be sold the paperless way.

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written by Scott Bot , November 24, 2009

I think the idea is terrible. I depend on scalping tickets to live events to supplement my income. I mean, how else am I to earn tax free dollars?

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written by MJ , November 24, 2009

Not everyone has a credit card , but even if you do aren't you going to be madder than anything if you'vr just changed your purse or wallet and didn't switch over all of your cards. Or have left it sitting bside your computer when the show is about to start, you've got 8,000 people also "checking in" and you've travelled in from out of town and hour away. I think this idea needs a lot more thought before it is implemented.

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written by Danielle , November 23, 2009

They've got a good idea going, but it needs some tweaking.
Maybe they should require the name of the person attending when the tickets are purchased, and they can then present photo ID, but not the credit card used to purchase. That way even teenagers can get in with their student ID cards. Still eliminates scalping because obviously scalpers wouldn't know ahead of time the names of people they are going to sell too.

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written by marjorie , November 23, 2009

Leave it up to promoters to punish the legitamite buyers to stop scalpers. Ever heard of not selling 50 tickets to one individual?? What about the fact that tickets are offered online by the promoter after being "sold out"?

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written by Lydia , November 23, 2009

Seems like going paperless will also take a lot of time...show your credit card & ID at the door, get a seat locater slip? Have 11,000 people go through this process at an event and we will still be waiting to get in at the door while the show starts! I'd rather deal with paper tickets & scalpers.

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written by SERIOUSLY? , November 23, 2009

That is fantastic, but what if you do not own a credit card. I am a 30 something mom of two, I live off of cash, If I can't afford to buy it, I save for it. So if I save to attend a concert, I wish to pay for it in cash, what am I to do now?

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written by K. , November 23, 2009

"...won't work for teenagers, who don't have a credit card,..."?

Teenagers aren't the only ones who don't have credit cards. Some adults, who for different reasons, don't have a credit card--I am one of those adults.

What if I & others want to go to an event at Credit Union Centre? Are we to be excluded just because we don't carry the 'proper' plastic in our wallets/purses?

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written by jurgens , November 23, 2009

This sounds good but one must admit many many patrons are teens and gift giving is also very common. How will they fix this problem?

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