Event Ticketing

The issues with the global ticketing industry are well-documented at this point. Bot-based tech has us fighting due to dynamic pricing, and getting into a mode of panic buying. Then there’s hidden fees, queues and scams, scalping, counterfeiting, pricing wars in the resale market and more. It’s all wildly unfair and unethical.

NFT-based ticketing has been making the rounds as a viable alternative. NFT ticketing could provide a more flexible and customizable ticketing experience for fans. For example, event organizers could create special NFT tickets for VIP experiences or exclusive events, or allow fans to purchase collectible NFT tickets that could increase in value over time. Not to mention, there could be transparency around the number of tickets available and their pricing - without the interference of systems generated to trick consumers. With the provenance that comes from NFTs, ticketing fraud could be eliminated and more data would be collected on the nature of, and appetite around secondary sales.

But if implemented on a vast scale for major global events - how can the underlying chain support the millions of users who make transactions on the network at the same time? After all, the NFT world is no stranger to congestion issues, network downtime and gas wars.

An app-specific scaling solution could help in such cases. But having an entire chain built just for an event is just not feasible! Following the event there will be no on-chain activity, making it a wasted resource. In such cases, a flash layer’s event-driven model could do wonders. One can spin up an on-demand layer for the duration of the event, use it to issue tickets and then once it is sold, the layer gets disposed of and the NFTs live on the underlying chain.

A flash layer refers to a disposable off-chain network that facilitates transactions by providing a boost in transaction speed and scalability. It operates in sync with the underlying blockchain. Flash layers are particularly useful when a developer expects an increased demand for a dApp. With a quick-to-deploy flash layer, they could integrate a rollup as per their needs to avoid congestion across the Layer1, and subsequently when a campaign ends or when demand tapers, they are free to easily dispose of the rollup via an “end-of-life” settlement on the Layer1.