Secutix’s Blockchain Solution Aides Stade de France & Ed Sheeran’s Ambition to Tackle Black Market

The musician’s Stade De France gig next year will be the first concert in France to use blockchain technology.

Ed Sheeran is returning to the live stage with a series of stadium shows in 2022, including two nights at the Stade de France in Paris. To help combat the secondary ticket market, tickets for the Paris gigs will be delivered using blockchain technology from SecuTix. This will be the first time a concert in France has deployed blockchain ticketing technology on such a large scale.

SecuTix and Stade de France are long-term partners and when Ed Sheeran’s management team requested that all tickets be secure and digital, SecuTix recommended the use of their TIXnGO mobile digital application. SecuTix’s blockchain mobile ticket solution eliminates fraud and was recently deployed successfully at scale by UEFA at the Euros 2020. 

It works by using blockchain to create a unique, encrypted ticket for smartphones that is completely traceable and much more secure than many barcode digital systems. Blockchain removes the risk of counterfeit tickets and makes it easy for fans to transfer or resell securely. Using the app, ticket holders will be able to securely download, transfer, keep, or assign a guest to a ticket, at any point. For the Ed Sheeran concerts, fans can only buy up to six tickets, meaning that the bots used by some illegal resale sites to buy hundreds or even thousands of tickets will be blocked after six places.

The app will integrate with Stade de France’s wider digital ecosystem, including S-360, SecuTix’s ticketing engagement platform. Due to the openness of the S-360 platform and its ability to work with any sales channel required by the producer, it will aggregate all ticket sold through the tour’s key retail partners and deliver them to ticket holders’ smartphones using the Stade de France branded blockchain app.

Christian Binelli, SecuTix Chief Operating Officer, said: “Blockchain is a powerful technology in the fight to protect fans from the secondary ticketing market and we’d encourage more venues and promoters to consider using it. We’ve proved it works at scale at huge sporting events, such as Euro 2020, and now the music industry has recognised its potential. We’re proud to help Stade de France and Ed Sheeran ensure that his fans pay a fair price for tickets and that fans have the opportunity to experience a full digital journey until the moment they enjoy the unique emotion of his live concert.” 

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Editors notes

SecuTix is the market leader in advanced digital solutions for the event industry. As a seamlessly integrated and open SaaS platform, SecuTix gives organisations complete control and a suite of tools to better understand and digitally engage with audiences, monetise products and services, secure operations and take audience experiences to the next level.

SecuTix serves a range of organisations on a global scale, including sport clubs, stadiums and arenas, museums, live entertainment organisations, leisure parks and festivals. Its emblematic customers include the UEFA, Opéra National de Paris, Centre Pompidou, Paléo Festival, Musée Picasso Paris and many more.

The SecuTix suite of industry-leading solutions includes SecuTix 360, TIXnGO and Oxynade.

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