.: RFID Technology from Texas Instruments Prevents Counterfeit Tickets at Tennis Master Cup 2005 in Shanghai :.

One of the Largest RFID Ticketing Applications for Sporting Events in China Dallas

December 19, 2005

All 100,000 tickets sold for the Tennis Master Cup 2005 in Shanghai, China, held November 13-20 were genuine, thanks to a stadium-wide radio frequency identification (RFID) ticketing system based on high-frequency tags from Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN) (TI). The Ba-Shi Group, which holds the contract to host the event at the Shanghai Qi Zhong stadium from 2005 through 2007, created one of the largest RFID-based anti-counterfeit ticketing applications for sporting events in China . The system, which uses TI's Tag-it™ HF-I ISO/IEC 15693 inlays incorporated into each ticket, allows event organizers to protect ticket revenues and helps to prevent the use of counterfeit tickets.

Before tickets were mailed to the purchaser, specific information such as the section and seat number, date and unique ID, was written to the RFID-enabled tag. When a spectator entered the Shanghai Qi Zhong stadium through any of the 16 RFID reader-enabled gates, a quick wave of his or her ticket confirmed its authenticity and provided immediate visual verification on a display at the gate. Event staff was also equipped with handheld RFID readers to spot check tickets inside the stadium.

“Prior to using RFID, spectators were required to purchase a pre-event ticket holder and then exchange it for the physical ticket at the stadium box office,” said Yang Yibin, deputy general manager of New Sports and Entertainment ( Shanghai ) Ltd., a subsidiary of the Ba-Shi Group. “This new system not only offers peace of mind that the tickets purchased are genuine, it puts tickets in the purchaser's hands faster and provides more efficient entry come event time.”

The systems integrators who worked on the implementation are Shanghai HSIC Application System Co., Ltd., Shanghai Shenbo Intelligent ID Technology Co., Ltd., and Shanghai East Ticket Co., Ltd. Hua Shen supplied the stationary and handheld RFID readers. Tickets were printed using the CL408E-HF, 13.56 MHz ISO/IEC 15693 RFID printers from SATO Shanghai Co., Ltd.

The RFID ticketing system will be expanded to include payment for the Tennis Master Cup 2006. Spectators will be able to automatically pay for refreshments and merchandise using an RFID tag.

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