Jeju to give up to 20,000 won in local currency for sports festival attendance
Version 2: A second business outlet has now carried the programme in full, adding the provincial festival planning chief's comments and the province's pre-check and on-site response plans; no facts already reported were disputed.
In short
Jeju province said it will issue NFT-based digital tickets for the 107th National Sports Festival, held Oct 16–22, and pay spectators who verify their attendance up to 20,000 won per person in the local currency “Tamnaneun-jeon”. The money is paid in 10,000-won units for verifying the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony or a venue visit, and can be spent at restaurants, cafes and traditional markets near the venues. Newsis separately reported the festival torch was lit at Manisan on Ganghwa Island on Oct 3 ahead of a relay through five Jeju islands.
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Jeju province said on Oct 6 that it will issue NFT-based digital tickets for the 107th National Sports Festival, which runs from Oct 16 to 22, and pay spectators who verify their attendance up to 20,000 won per person in the local currency “Tamnaneun-jeon”, Yonhap reported. Newsis carried the same reward figure in its headline, and Asia Economy reported the programme as a way to link the national event to local commercial spending and tourism. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
According to Yonhap and Asia Economy, the currency is paid in 10,000-won units each time a spectator verifies the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony or a venue visit, with a ceiling of 20,000 won per person. Yonhap said attendance at the opening and closing ceremonies is verified by a smartphone scan on entry, while at venues spectators use short-range wireless authentication tags installed on site. [ 1 , 3 ]
The province said the tickets are mobile-based digital tickets that can be applied for through the event's official website and checked in the Naver Pay Wallet. Both Yonhap and Asia Economy reported that eligibility follows Naver Pay Wallet rules and is limited to domestic residents aged 14 or older, while children under 14 can watch the opening ceremony and events together with accompanying family without a ticket. [ 1 , 3 ]
The province said the money can be used at restaurants, cafes and traditional markets around the venues, and that ticket holders can also enter 24 designated public tourist sites free or at a 50% discount. Asia Economy reported that the province plans to pre-check the whole process from ticket issuance through entry, attendance verification and benefit payment, and to run on-site guidance and a real-time response system. [ 1 , 3 ]
Hong Ho-jin, head of the province's national sports festival planning team, said the NFT digital ticket is a “co-existence” participation programme meant to let spectators cheer for athletes while enjoying Jeju's food and sights, and that the province will do its utmost so the festival becomes a successful sports celebration that energises the local economy, Asia Economy reported. [ 3 ]
Newsis, whose headline also reported the up-to-20,000-won reward, said in its article text that the festival torch was lit at Manisan on Ganghwa Island on Oct 3 and will be carried via Chujado, Biyangdo, Gapado, Marado and Udo before a three-day relay across 115 sections within Jeju from Oct 14. The other two documents do not mention the torch relay. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The programme ties a national sporting event in Jeju to local spending by converting verified attendance into region-restricted currency that the province says can be used at venues, restaurants and traditional markets. Ticket holders are also offered free or discounted entry at 24 designated public tourist sites, extending the province's digital ticket service to a national event. Coverage rests on the province's announcement and business outlets, so the scale of payouts and take-up is not yet documented.
Key facts
- Jeju province announced on Oct 6 that it will issue NFT digital tickets for the 107th National Sports Festival and pay spectators who verify attendance up to 20,000 won per person in the local currency “Tamnaneun-jeon”. [ 1 , 3 ]
- The festival runs from Oct 16 to 22 in Jeju. [ 1 , 3 ]
- The currency is paid at 10,000 won each time a spectator verifies the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony or a venue visit, capped at 20,000 won per person. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Tickets are mobile-based NFT digital tickets applied for on the event's official website and checked in the Naver Pay Wallet. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Eligibility is limited to domestic residents aged 14 or older who use the Naver Pay Wallet; children under 14 can attend the opening ceremony and venues with accompanying family without a ticket. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Rewards can be spent at restaurants, cafes and traditional markets around the venues, and ticket holders receive free entry or a 50% discount at 24 designated public tourist sites. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Newsis reported the festival torch was lit at Manisan on Ganghwa Island on Oct 3 and will be carried via Chujado, Biyangdo, Gapado, Marado and Udo before a three-day relay across 115 sections in Jeju from Oct 14. [ 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Jeju province is hosting the 107th National Sports Festival and will pay spectators who verify attendance up to 20,000 won per person in the local currency “Tamnaneun-jeon”. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The festival runs from Oct 16 to 22. [ 1 , 3 ]
- The currency is paid at 10,000 won per verification of the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony or a venue visit, with a ceiling of 20,000 won per person. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Tickets are NFT-based digital tickets applied for on the festival's official website and checked in the Naver Pay Wallet. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Eligibility follows Naver Pay Wallet rules and is limited to domestic residents aged 14 or older, while children under 14 may attend the opening ceremony and venues with accompanying family without a ticket. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Rewards can be used at restaurants, cafes and traditional markets around the venues, and ticket holders receive free entry or a 50% discount at 24 designated public tourist sites. [ 1 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- The torch relay route and schedule, including the Oct 3 lighting at Manisan and the 115 relay sections in Jeju from Oct 14. Only Newsis reports these details; Yonhap and Asia Economy do not mention the torch relay.
- How the reward programme will be operated on site and what pre-checks were carried out. Only Asia Economy describes a pre-check of the process from ticket issuance to benefit payment and an on-site guidance and real-time response system.
- The programme's budget and the number of spectators expected to take part. No document gives a cost figure or participation target.
- How foreign visitors or others outside the stated eligibility rule obtain tickets or rewards. The documents state the condition but do not say what applies to those who do not meet it.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Jeju province's announcement of NFT digital tickets and Tamnaneun-jeon rewards is reported by Yonhap. [ 1 ]
- Newsis reports in its headline that spectators who verify attendance can receive up to 20,000 won in Jeju's local currency, and in its article text describes the festival torch relay. [ 2 ]
- Asia Economy reports the programme in full, including the provincial festival planning chief's comments and the province's operational plans. [ 3 ]