Isle of Wight festival goers get contactless tickets and payments

“There are a number of festivals throughout the UK, Europe and United States adopting the technology, and they’re all using entry wristbands as the intermediary,” says technology provider ID&C. “It’s convenient for fans and will only benefit their experience.”

Contactless wristbands at the Isle of Wight music festival
WRISTBANDS: “Faster than paying by cash,” says food vendor Andy Gratton. Click to enlarge.

More than 10,000 attendees at last weekend’s Isle of Wight music festival opted to use a contactless wristband to replace their entry ticket and make payments, technology supplier ID&C reports.

Prior to the festival, general ticket holders were given the chance to upgrade their standard entry wristband to one containing a contactless payments chip that could be used to store prepaid funds. They could then link their wristband to their debit or credit card account to load funds onto the account. Further funds could be automatically added to the account whenever the balance fell below £20 (US$31), or funds could be added manually at top-up points located around the festival site. Any unspent balance was then refunded back to customers at the end of the event.

All of the main bars throughout the site plus a number of catering outlets and other vendors accepted payments via the contactless wristbands.

“The transactions are faster than paying by cash or traditional chip and pin,” says Andy Gratton, one of the festival’s food traders. “People now have their ticket entry, festival ID and their wallet all in their wristband, it’s really convenient and I can see it becoming more and more popular.”

ID&C partnered with MasterCard UKVodafoneCentral Catering, technology companies IVS and Quantum Card Services, and the Isle of Wight Festival organisers to offer the new RFID wristbands.

“Last year the wristbands were trialed successfully amongst a limited number of VIPs,” explains Steve Daly, ID&C’s operations director. “There are a number of festivals throughout the UK, Europe and United States adopting the technology, and they’re all using entry wristbands as the intermediary. It’s convenient for fans and will only benefit their experience.“

“This year’s trial is the latest milestone in the journey towards a truly ‘cashless’ environment, as festival goers look to spend less time queuing and more time enjoying their favourite bands,” adds Marion King, president of MasterCard UK & Ireland.

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