Understanding Barcoded Tickets & Scanners

For some venues experiencing high numbers of fraudulent tickets, barcoded ticketing and real-time scanning offers security and prevention of ticket duplication. Let's examine the barcode ticketing process to help you understand the elements needed for a successful and secure ticketing system.

Barcoded Tickets

All ThunderTix clients have the ability to enable a printable PDF ticket for any event. Each PDF ticket includes a unique barcode which identifies the customer and order associated with that ticket purchase. For example, a customer buys 3 tickets for "Once Upon a Matress" showing at 7pm on Friday night September 18. They then receive an email confirmation receipt of purchase which includes a single PDF attachment that is 3 pages long; Each page of PDF is a separate ticket that includes a unique barcode and barcode ID number.

Scanning Tickets

When the ticket is presented for admittance to the show, the barcode is scanned to check validity for a match to the Once Upon a Matress show for that night (Friday at 7pm on 9-18-09). If the ticket is valid, ThunderTix will return a valid response in green, displaying the buyer's name.

If the ticket is not valid (maybe it is for Once Upon a Matress, but the Saturday night showing), ThunderTix will return a response in red stating "Invalid Scan". Lastly, if a PDF had been duplicated, the second attempt to enter the show with the same barcode ID will return a red response stating that the barcode has "Already been scanned" so that the appropriate measures can be taken by the venue agent.

Barcode Scanners

ThunderTix offers barcode scanners for purchase and also for 1 week rentals. Barcode scanners are available in two styles -- connected by USB or wireless. Scanners that are connected to the computer are easy to use and usually inexpensive. If the entrance point or gate does not have a desktop or laptop computer nearby, the next option is a wireless scanner with Windows CE using a Wireless Network for Internet access. Lastly, if there is no Internet access in the area, the barcode scanner can use a SIM card with the Edge network for ticket scanning and validation.

Contact us at 877-883-6464 for more information about buying or renting unit(s) for your next event using ThunderTix.