When was the last time you needed a ticket? Chances are that if you attended a play, movie, sporting event or even rock concert you had to purchase tickets in order to gain admittance. It is a common practice that has been around for quite some time. People needed a way to show that they had paid for admittance to a particular event.



Even in ancient history there was still this need. As time has changed so too has the standard event ticket. Once you had to buy them in person at the event but now you have the option of buying online and printing your own ticket immediately.

That is a great convenience! If you are new to the world of tickets or simply need to brush up on the facts, you have come to the right place. This article will cover the basics of ticketing and how tickets can be purchased the right way and the wrong way.

What are tickets used for?

Tickets are used to gain admittance to an event. It does not matter what the event is, it is a way for the hosts of the event to keep track of how many people were at the event and it allows ticket holders to have a way into the event. Tickets are used for sporting events, musical acts, plays, movies and even used in today's casinos as a different monetary form.

Tickets have a long history dating back to the earliest plays performed for the Ancient Greeks. Stubs would be purchased so that audience members could show that they paid for their way into the theater. Even school's issue tickets for various activities and as rewards. You would be hard pressed to find any event or happening that does not use a ticket in some way.

What is ticket scalping?

Ticket scalping is the business of buying up huge lots of tickets when they go on sale and then turning around to sell them for a profit. In many states this is very illegal and you can be arrested. There is no law that says you cannot sell a ticket you have purchased...just laws stating how much profit you can make on that said ticket.

If you are buying tickets from a scalper you can expect to pay a lot more than the issuance price. You now have to worry about whether or not the ticket is real. There have been many cases of tickets being sold by scalpers that turn out to be fake.

Are casino's now using a ticket system instead of coins?

One of the big changes in casinos lately has been the use of a ticketing system rather than coins for slot machines and video poker machines. In the past you would insert tokens or coins in order to play. If you won you would be rewarded by the clicking and clanging of coins spilling from the machine.

In modernized casinos you get a printed ticket that you take to the cashier's cage. This ticketing system saves you from having to carry around a bucket filled with coins and tokens. It also saves the casino time from having to count the coins and it helps eliminate cheating.

How do I know if a ticket is fake?

Unfortunately you will not know that a ticket is fake until you take it to the venue at which the event is happening. It can be extremely disheartening to learn you paid out hundreds of dollars on a ticket that is a scam.

It is something to definitely worry about if you are dealing with a ticket seller that you do not know. The easiest way to avoid this scenario is to only buy from authorized ticket sellers such as Ticketmaster or the venue itself.