One system, every touchpoint: The technology behind Hong Kong's busiest live events

For years, live events in Hong Kong have relied on a patchwork of systems and suppliers: one for ticketing, another for access control, another for cashless payments, with little way to connect the data once the gates open.

Zicket was built to close those gaps. And in 2026, that approach earned industry recognition when the Hong Kong company won gold for Best Use of Tech at the Marketing Events Awards Hong Kong for its work as AIA Carnival's official technology and ticketing partner.

The real problem comes after those systems start generating data. Without a shared view, organisers are left piecing together what happened after the event, by which point decisions on staffing, stock, pricing and marketing have already been made.

Zicket's answer is to connect the systems behind the event rather than treat them as separate point solutions. Ticketing, RFID and cashless payments, digital marketing and event services all contribute to a shared operational view, so organisers can act on what is happening on site rather than reconcile it afterwards.

AIA Carnival's 2025/26 season put that approach to the test at scale. Over its 70-day run, more than 600,000 visitors came through the gates, while Zicket's RFID infrastructure operated at 300 sales points. More than four million transactions were processed with 100% system uptime throughout the season.

Behind those numbers, the same transactions were building a live picture of the carnival. Organisers could see ticket sales, entry numbers, attendance, dwell time, game performance and food and beverage sales as the event unfolded. Daily reporting helped vendors manage stock and availability during peak periods, while commercial reporting allowed the Carnival team to adjust programming, pricing and operations as the season progressed rather than after it ended.

That connected approach extended to the visitor experience too. New RFID card registration allowed guests to check balances, review spending history and top up through mobile payment. It recorded over 12,000 online top-ups in its first season and created an identifiable, opted-in audience that opened new possibilities for segmentation and future marketing.

The AIA Carnival win adds to a broader run of recognition for Zicket, including two gold wins at the Asia eCommerce Awards in 2025, managing director Aidan Pawson's Best Event Technologist title, gold at the DigiZ Awards in 2024, and wins at the Privacy Friendly Awards in 2021 and 2024.

As live events become more complex, connecting the technology behind them becomes increasingly valuable. For Zicket, the aim is not simply to make each touchpoint work, but to make the information flowing through them useful while there is still time to act on it. At AIA Carnival, the numbers demonstrate that approach at scale.

To find out more about Zicket's work across live events, visit zicket.io. 

This article is sponsored by Zicket.