Ticket scalping surges ahead of Seoul fireworks festival amid legal loophole

Ticket scalping has surged ahead of the Seoul International Fireworks Festival, with tickets being resold at significant markups just a week before the event at Yeouido Hangang Park. Despite the government's efforts to tighten laws against ticket scalping, fireworks festivals are exempt from existing regulations, leaving authorities without legal recourse to combat the issue.

This year's festival, now in its 22nd year, is set to take place on Saturday and is expected to draw around 1 million spectators. The organizer, Hanwha, has created a designated viewing area, Nodeul Island, offering 700 paid seats priced between 110,000 won ($79.70) and 220,000 won, depending on the location. However, numerous festival tickets are being listed for prices far exceeding face value on secondhand trading platforms, indicating the persistence of the scalping problem.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.