Market Report: Hong Kong
Stadium tours have bypassed Hong Kong for too many years. This is about to change with the completion of Kai Tak Sports Park, a 50,000-cap stadium and a 10,000-cap indoor arena, part of ASM Global’s network.
The complex will provide much- needed competition to the few venues that can cater to mid- and large-scale concerts in Hong Kong.
Primary ticketing
Hong Kong’s ticketing industry continues to be dominated by the “big four” – HK Ticketing, Cityline, Ticketflap, and Urbtix. Mayoan (from China) replaced Cityline as the software provider to Urbtix in late 2022.
Ticketflap is seen as the country’s most progressive ticketing company, “Our APIs continue to set us apart locally, and we are implementing dynamic QR codes shortly,” says Martin Haigh, the company’s sales director.
“Our APIs continue to set us apart locally, and we are implementing dynamic QR codes shortly”
Ticketflap’s sister company, Total Ticketing, licenses its inventory management and ticketing software to large venues locally and regionally, including Kai Tak Sports Park, and to event organisers such as the iconic Hong Kong Sevens rugby tournament, and Clockenflap, Hong Kong’s long-running music and arts festival, which was acquired by Live Nation in 2023.
Self-service ticketing platform Megatix, which has offices across southeast Asia and Australia, also operates here.
Distribution of sales
Most tickets are bought online, and there has been a rapid move towards digital ticketing. HK Ticketing still provides physical options, but the trend is firmly towards digital.
Value of market
The live music market in Hong Kong is currently valued at around $192-$256m, says Megatix founder and CEO Roshan Odhavji. “The industry is rebounding from recent challenges, with growth driven by local and international events,” he adds.
Secondary ticketing
Ticket reselling remains a contentious and popular issue around the territory. Scalpers are locally referred to as wongngau (yellow cows in Cantonese).
“Technically, it’s illegal to sell tickets at more than 10% above face value for most venues”
“Technically, it’s illegal to sell tickets at more than 10% above face value for most venues,” says Magnetic Asia’s head of music and Clockenflap co-founder Justin Sweeting, adding that the malpractice is completely unlawful at government- owned venues. Reports of fines (just $25) and imprisonment are few and far between.
However, some organisers have successfully trialled real-name registration to enhance ticket security. “Audiences were required to present their ID for verification before a fan meeting of K-Drama heartthrob Byeon Woo-Seok in July,” says a spokesperson for AsiaWorld-Expo.
International/domestic splits & genres
While local Cantopop acts and K-Pop/J-Pop/Mandopop/ T-Pop (Thai pop) still dominate, international artists continue to be a big draw, with the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Phoenix, and Caroline Polachek headlining Clockenflap festivals in 2023.
Cultural analysis
With TikTok’s unavailability in the territory, platforms such as YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, and Asian alternatives KKBOX and JOOX remain vital in the music discovery and consumption scene. Sweeting adds that for consumer behaviour, there has been an increasing trend for people to delay purchasing decisions unless it’s a “hot show.”
The difficulty of booking venues is compounded by “unreliable and non- transparent processes, which need to improve.”
The lack of a replacement venue after the closure of the KITEC (Kowloonbay International Trade & Exhibition Centre) has proved galling for Sweeting, who added that the difficulty of booking venues is compounded by “unreliable and non- transparent processes, which need to improve.”
Kai Tak Sports Park opening next year is a cause for optimism amongst organisers.
Taxes & charges
There is no tax on tickets to the consumer in Hong Kong. Ticketing platforms charge promoters between 3% and 5% (including payment service provider fees). Ticket-buyers pay handling fees of between $1.00 and $1.54. Withholding tax for international artists is 11% in Hong Kong.
Arena Market: Hong Kong
Hong Kong is an important stop for international touring artists during their tours across Asia.
“After Covid, we saw a robust resurgence in live entertainment, and we’re expecting to stage 100 concerts this year, which will surpass the total number of shows we hosted in 2019,” said a spokesperson for the AsiaWorld-Expo (AWE), Hong Kong’s largest indoor arena. Able to accommodate 14,000 attendees, the AWE – which has seen sold-out gigs by Westlife, Backstreet Boys, and Post Malone in the recent past– promises over 60 international acts in 2024 alone, with three international concerts that took place on one March date alone.
Some of the most prominent acts that already performed in 2024 include 21 Savage and Tom Jones, while The War on Drugs, French multi-instrumentalist FKJ, and Icelandic- Chinese jazz pop singer Laufey are booked for later this year.
Alongside renowned musicians, the AWE presented large-scale events such as pop culture festival ComplexCon (which held its first international edition at the venue earlier this year) and KCON, a leading Korean cultural festival previously seen in Japan, Thailand, and Saudi Arabia.
“There’s a growing demand for B2C events in Hong Kong, and one significant factor driving this demand is the increasing trend of tourism, especially from mainland China to Hong Kong”
“There’s a growing demand for B2C events in Hong Kong, and one significant factor driving this demand is the increasing trend of tourism, especially from mainland China to Hong Kong,” the spokesperson continued, adding the territory welcomed 34m visitors last year, 26m of whom came from its mainland neighbour.
Furthermore, the AWE launched a HK$1bn venue-wide renovation project that includes a new retractable seat riser, a refurbished VIP lounge, new acoustic panels, the installation of more LED lights and screens, and the first Wi-Fi 6 project in Hong Kong’s exhibition industry.
“Compared to 2018, we achieved energy savings of up to 30% through the implementation of new facilitie,” according to the venue’s spokesperson.
Following a tragic incident in 2022 when two dancers were severely injured after a giant screen fell on them during a gig by Cantopop group Mirror, the Hong Kong Coliseum has yet to experience the same fervour as the AWE when it comes to hosting prominent international acts. Limited to just local acts such as Aaron Kwok, Sammi Cheng, and Andy Lau on the 2024 calendar, it remains to be seen whether the 12,500-capacity venue will be able to welcome some of the world’s biggest artists during a tour stopover.