'Ticket Scalping with "Pornographic-Level" Menus... University Festival Struggles After 3 Years'

Controversy Over 'Provocative Phrases' on Banners and Menus Again This Year
"The Charm of College Life... Will Get Tickets Somehow" Festival Ticket Scalping Rampant
Admission Tickets Priced 15,000 Won Soar Up to 300,000 Won

Recently, provocative banners and menus displayed at a pub during a university festival in Daejeon have sparked criticism from netizens. Photo by Everytime capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jung-wan] As social distancing measures have been eased, university campuses are experiencing various controversies amid the first full-scale face-to-face festivals in three years. While criticism has been directed at universities that installed pub banners and menus containing provocative phrases, ticket scalping for cheering festivals appears to be rampant.

On the 22nd, photos of a pub banner and menu board made at a festival booth of a university in Daejeon were posted on the anonymous university community 'Everytime' and various online communities. The poster who uploaded the photos on Everytime criticized, "All other booths have their department names written, but this one does not," and added, "From the booth name to the menu, the intention is obvious. Who on earth is managing this festival to allow this?"

The banner in the photo posted by the user reads, "Oppa, I think this is X here." Below the text, in small letters, is the phrase "price is." In another photo, the food names on the menu board contained phrases reminiscent of pornographic video titles, and the prices on the menu were indicated in "GB (gigabytes)," referring to video file sizes.

As the post spread online, netizens raised their voices in criticism, saying, "It's shocking that no one is stopping this," "Is this really a 2022 photo?" and "It's uncivilized." As the controversy grew, the university reportedly dismantled the pub and demanded a letter of reflection from the student council of the department that planned the booth.

This is not the first time that provocative phrases on banners or menus at university festivals have caused controversy. During the 2016 festival at Chosun University, a booth displayed a pub banner with the phrase "Oppa, I think this is X here" and the small text "price is." When the photos spread online, comments followed, such as "It's clearly an expression that can easily cause misunderstanding," and "Don't they know these incidents cause controversy and make the news every university festival?"

A photo of a pub offering a snack set named after criminals Oh Won-chun and Go Young-wook spread online, sparking criticism, leading some universities to cancel all festival schedules. Photo by Online Community Capture

There have also been cases where festival schedules were completely canceled due to criticism that provocative expressions showed a lack of social awareness. During the 2015 Hanyang University ERICA Campus festival, a festival pub caused public outrage by naming side dishes after notorious criminals: the "Oh Won-chun Set," named after a murderer, and the "Go Young-wook Set," named after Go Young-wook, who was imprisoned for sexual assault of minors and later released. Online comments included, "I wonder if they felt no remorse toward crime victims or their families before opening the pub," and "Disciplinary action is necessary."

In response to the controversy, the university's student council immediately ordered the removal of the pub and subsequently canceled all scheduled festival events. The pub representative posted on Facebook, stating, "The intention behind planning the 'Crime Prevention Pocha' was to raise awareness of the shocking crimes committed by criminals by using the name 'Crime Prevention' and to realize this by conceptually punishing prisoners at the pub," and added, "We sincerely apologize with bowed heads to those who were emotionally hurt by our wrong planning and to everyone who has been affected as this incident spread."

On the 22nd, posts trading festival entrance tickets were uploaded on Yonsei University's university community. Photo by Everytime capture

Meanwhile, ahead of Yonsei University's cheering festival 'Akaraka' on the 24th, ticket scalping is rampant. Since only those who win the lottery can purchase tickets, those who fail the lottery have no choice but to buy scalped tickets to enter the festival. As the festival, which was suspended due to COVID-19, fully resumes, demand has surged not only among freshmen but also among students from the classes of 2020 and 2021 who have not experienced the festival, causing scalped ticket prices to rise significantly. On online communities, posts offering to buy tickets priced at 15,000 KRW for as much as 300,000 KRW or stating "I will pay whatever price is asked" have been flooding in.

Lee (21), a 2021 student at Yonsei University, said, "I searched for ticket sale posts and was surprised that the prices were much higher than I expected," adding, "Still, I think the festival is the charm of university life, so I want to get a ticket somehow." He also said, "The atmosphere among seniors and classmates around me is that everyone is trying to get tickets somehow."

Yonsei University Cheerleading Squad Notice. Photo by Yonsei University Cheerleading Squad Instagram Capture

In response to this situation, the Yonsei University cheering squad, which organizes Akaraka, issued a warning against illegal ticket trading. On the 15th, the Yonsei cheering squad posted on Instagram, stating, "Illegal ticket trading is a clear violation of the law," and added, "Tickets traded above the official price will be immediately confiscated and refunded, and sellers who attempt such transactions will be permanently banned from all future Akaraka ticket sales."