The Terror of a Crowd Crush at Tokyo Dome & the AnyPASS Connection Issue | BLACKPINK WORLD TOUR [BORN PINK] JAPAN Day 1
I attended the BLACKPINK world tour, BORN PINK at Tokyo Dome. It was the first day of the Japan tour. I was lucky enough to get a resale ticket.
The concert itself was absolutely wonderful. I want to write a report on it later, but I never expected to feel a terror that brought the Itaewon crowd crush to mind at Tokyo Dome—a venue that is not new and has hosted countless events. It was by far the most terrifying and chaotic concert I have ever been to. I am writing down what happened.
Disorderly crowds that bring the Itaewon tragedy to mind
My seat was at Gate 21 on the first floor of the stands. Perhaps because it was near the center and had a large number of seats, I got caught in a tremendous crowd.
When I headed toward Gate 21 from the station along the dome, the density of the crowd was extraordinary. The flow of people trying to leave and those trying to enter collided, and no one could move. Even if you wanted to get out, you couldn't. There were no ropes or guidance signs that should have been there.
I thought it would be bad if I stayed in the crowd and got caught in a human stampede, so I escaped onto a wall and took the photo above. In some places, the crowd was swaying back and forth from the pressure. It reminded me of the precursors to a crowd crush. I followed the wall away from Gate 21 and finally found a sign that said, 'End of the line for Gate 21 is here.' I didn't think it was possible to move properly through that crowd and find the end-of-the-line sign.
I just stood in that line. It moved inch by inch, but it didn't look like I would make it in time for the 18:00 start. A group behind me left to ask if they could enter through a gate other than 21, but they came back, presumably because it wasn't allowed.
It wasn't as chaotic and pushy as before, but I still felt anxious being in the crowd. The announcements from the megaphone were too quiet to hear. Due to poor network connectivity, some people were even pushing through the crowd in the opposite direction to try and get a signal.
When there were about 100 people left until the gate, an announcement was made to 'go to an open gate.' I went all the way to Gate 24, and to my surprise, I was able to enter very smoothly. There were even staff members there. I arrived at my seat 30 minutes after the start time. The show started 40 minutes late.
This is the first time I've experienced such chaotic guidance at any venue, including those other than the Dome. I thought that a prestigious venue like Tokyo Dome would be used to managing crowds... but I was wrong. The only other time I've been to Tokyo Dome was for the TWICE concert in 2022, and I didn't encounter such chaos. Entry times were also specified in advance. As an amateur, I feel there were places where they should have put up more ropes or stationed more guides.
AnyPASS (digital ticket app) won't connect
The digital ticket app for this event was called AnyPASS, which has a mechanism where the entry QR code is updated periodically. This means you cannot enter with a screenshot, and a smartphone with a network connection is essential.
First of all, there were too many people, so the network wouldn't connect. I was also very scared by the behavior where the app wouldn't even launch if the network connection was too poor.
And I didn't know how to deal with it when it wouldn't connect. There wasn't even an error message specific to the app; only a pathetic message from the built-in browser saying 'Internet not connected' appeared. I was caught in a dilemma: I had to connect to the internet, but I couldn't connect to the internet near the venue.
As a result, one person after another struggled to enter. The lines were already disorderly due to insufficient guidance and information, and they weren't clearing out, while a counter-flow of people trying to leave the venue in search of a network connection emerged. I think this is what created the terrifying, chaotic crowd.
Solution 1: Set the network to 3G priority (for Android and iPhone 11 or earlier)
The solution I found was to set the network to 3G priority. It becomes dramatically easier to connect. While I couldn't get a signal unless I left the Tokyo Dome grounds when set to 5G/4G priority, I was able to stay connected the whole time. On Android, you can do this from Settings > Network & Internet > the settings button next to the carrier name > Preferred network type.
On an iPhone, you can set it from Settings > Cellular > Cellular Data Options > Voice & Data. However, unfortunately, it seems you cannot set it to 3G priority on iPhone 12 or later.
Solution 2: Open the AnyPASS app while you still have a network connection
The solution announced on-site was to get a network connection away from the crowd, open AnyPASS, and then join the entry line while keeping it open.
This works, but I'm concerned about battery consumption. Especially on Android, the AnyPASS QR code screen forces the screen brightness to maximum, which puts a heavy load on the battery. It seems the app might stay open in the background even if you turn the screen off, but it's hard to tell when the background process might cut out, so leaving it open is probably the safest bet.
Summary
I sincerely hope the guidance is improved for the second day. It felt more open than Itaewon and I think there were escape routes in a worst-case scenario, but it was still nothing but terrifying. I didn't want to feel that kind of fear before a concert.
I also want to write a review requesting improvements to the app. If you're going to build an app that assumes a network connection, at least have the app display what actions can be taken when the network is down. It's questionable that it returns nothing but a browser error, not even an app-specific error screen. If that's not possible, I'd like them to issue a warning in the notifications section. Looking into it, it seems similar network congestion issues have occurred multiple times in the past, so if a major app overhaul is difficult, I at least wanted them to announce some temporary workarounds.
I usually write on Hatena Blog https://www.zazaizumi.com/, but it was just so scary that I wrote about it on note as well.