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One of the industries hit hardest by COVID-19 has been live show business. From concerts to Broadway shows and comedy performances, the vast majority of venues born out of the population's need to delight in live experiences have been shut down since mid-March with no word yet on when or how they'd welcome audiences again.
Alas, a breakthrough. Given yesterday's hopeful news about a vaccine by Pfizer that has proven to be 90% effective during initial clinical trials, concert professionals have begun talking about possible frameworks likely to kickoff business in a post-pandemic future.
Specifically, Billboard reports that Ticketmaster—one, if not the, biggest ticket seller in the United States—has been working on a three-prong approach, which is still in a developmental phase. According to the website, if approved, the plan would ask ticket purchasers to verify their vaccination status or provide a negative COVID-19 test result approximately 24 to 72 hours hours before a show (length of test coverage would solely depend on regional laws). After taking the test or submitting to a vaccine, a fan would ask the lab to send the results to a health pass company the likes of IBM or CLEAR. If negative, the company would alert Ticketmaster, which would then send access credentials to the ticket holder. If testing posting or not having yet received a vaccine, Ticketmaster would not be sending any event access information.
This would be the first time an entire industry would rely on a third-party company to provide the sort of technology necessary to verify medical results. According to Billboard, neither Ticketmaster nor the health pass companies would store a fan's medical records but only verify the information.
Whether the plan of action will be swift or successful is yet to be seen, but we welcome any sort of progress made towards the return of our beloved live cultural events.
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