South Korean university festivals criticised for K-pop concert ticket scalping 

SEOUL – University festivals in South Korea are under fire for ticket scalping carried out by the universities’ students, who sell marked-up tickets to K-pop concerts held as part of the school festivals to members of the public.

Every May and June, universities across the country host a campus festival that lasts from two to four days for students and alumni, featuring events such as sports, club presentations and K-pop performances.

In recent years, these institutions have been competing for bigger names to appear at their festivals to boost their reputation. These shows attract not only students and alumni, but also members of the public who are K-pop fans and avid concertgoers.

Akaraka – the four-day festival currently running from May 28 to 31, and organised by Yonsei University’s student cheerleading team – features several K-pop groups, including Ateez, Ive, Itzy and Riize.

South Korean girl groups NewJeans, Illit and Nmixx were among the line-up for Ipselenti, Korea University’s festival organised by the student cheerleading squad, which ran from May 21 to 23.

Ticket sales and alumni donations cover the expense of putting on the concerts. Other college festival concerts are free, as they receive financial support from the school and donations from graduates.

Even when the tickets are sold, they are about 10 times cheaper than the ticket prices of typical K-pop concerts. Akaraka and Ipselenti charged 17,000 won (S$16.70) and 18,500 won respectively in 2024.

But a number of students who successfully drew lots to buy such concert tickets resold them online for several times the original price, sometimes for hundreds of thousands of won, thus drawing complaints.

“It’s shameful that some people have made money with (school) festival tickets that were for students and alumni only,” Yonsei University graduate Park Ji-ho, 35, said on May 28.

“Nowadays, there are more K-pop fans at Akaraka, who come only to watch the K-pop bands’ performance, than students.”

Mr Kim Kyung-ho, a former Korea University student, also expressed concern that his school’s festival was focusing more on K-pop concerts rather than club events involving students.

“I wish students would have fun with their friends and make good memories by engaging in club activities at the festival, rather than just watching K-pop performances,” he said. “It’s sad to see Ipselenti turning into a music concert.”

Yonsei University said its school cheerleading team runs the K-pop concerts at its festival and the school is not involved.

“There is nothing much we can do. The school is not linked to the management of K-pop concerts at Akaraka,” a member of Yonsei University’s public relations team said on May 28.

Yonsei University’s cheerleading team responded to complaints by switching to mobile tickets instead of paper tickets. The digital tickets cannot be screen-captured and can be seen only on the mobile phone to which the ticket was initially sent.

The concert organiser also provided those who reported the scalping with a chance to purchase tickets at the original price.

At Korea University, each ticket was assigned a unique number so that ticket scalpers could be tracked.

Other schools like Kyung Hee University and Hanyang University check student IDs or other forms of identification to prevent outsiders from attending on-campus K-pop concerts.

Konkuk University gave out 30,000 bracelets to students as an entrance ticket. Only those who presented all three – bracelet, student ID and another form of government-issued identification – were able to enter the venue. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK