ComplexCon brand sentiments dip following ticketing mix-up on Cityline

ComplexCon has seen a dip in brand sentiments after fans complained about the ticketing mix-up on Cityline regarding the show performed by K-pop girl group NJZ, formerly known as NewJeans.

Fans posted on Threads yesterday (11 February) that they bought tickets for the three-day music festival, taking place from 21 to 23 March, via priority booking from official ticketing website Cityline. 

However, after selecting tickets for the 23 March date to watch NJZ live performance, they were issued tickets for 21 March after payment, when the lineup included rapper MC Jin and US artists Metro Boomin and Quavo. Some fans tagged ComplexCon organiser’s Instagram account and left messages seeking assistance, according to a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw on Threads and Instagram. 

According to media intelligence firm CARMA, the incident generated 3,000 mentions, leading to an increase in negative sentiment for ComplexCon from 0.6% to 12.3%, while positive sentiment fell from 37.7% to 9.9%. Meanwhile, Cityline's negative sentiment rose from 8.9% to 13.3%, while its positive sentiment declined from 39.9% to 30%.

In response to the incident, ComplexCon said in a statement on Instagram that it promptly communicated this to Cityline for further action. However, it does not have access to Cityline’s system and cannot directly investigate and determine the cause of the incident.

To avoid similar issues from recurring, the organiser of the show said it will implement new ticketing arrangements for the general sale of all tickets originally slated for today (12 February). Tickets for the 23 March concert, featuring NJZ as the headliner, will be sold separately. The first phase of ticket sales will begin at 4pm today simultaneously on Trip.com, Cityline, Maoyan, and Ctrip.

“No other ComplexCon tickets will be available for purchase tomorrow,” it added. 

On the other hand, Cityline said in its statement that it had reviewed the transaction records with system logs accordingly and confirmed no irregularity found. The platform advised customers to send their transaction details or a copy of the confirmation email via email. It will investigate the cases based on the provided information and collaborate with the organiser for timely responses.

On the other hand, Consumer Council has received nine complaints regarding incorrect performance dates for ComplexCon concert tickets, totaling HK$39,479, according to HK01. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to ComplexCon for a statement. 

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