Asia News: Troye Sivan Pride Flags, BTS Merch

Fans who attended a recent Troye Sivan concert in Singapore were reportedly prevented by the security detail from hoisting rainbow-patterned Pride flags during the performance. Gay Star News reports that during the May 3 concert, Sivan explained to the crowd his “coming out experience,” which prompted some audience members to display Pride flags, which in turm prompted action from security guards.

One “prominent LGBTI rights activist” told Gay Star News that a security guard came up to him and said to put away his flag. The same guard said the same thing to a group of young women who were also displaying a Pride flag in the seats behind him. 

The guards said they confiscated the flags because they would be blocking the view of other audience members, though one woman who displayed a flag said she had purposely kept it low in consideration of people behind her. 

“It’s really upsetting,” she told Gay Star News. “We literally came to a concert for a gay dude. Why can’t we wave the flag?” 

Afterward, the audience members who brought the flags had to wait in line to retrieve them. One person told Gay Star News that it wasn’t just flags that were confiscated. Anything with a rainbow pattern was taken. Another person said she was asked by security when she entered the venue if she had a “rainbow flag on her.” There were apparently signs posted specifically saying that Pride flags—not just any flags but rainbow flags—couldn’t be brought into the venue.

According to the Singapore penal code, same-sex relations in Singapore are illegal. There are no anti-discrimination protections for LGBTI people in the city-state. Last year, when the British artist Dua Lipa performed in China, security dragged out audience members who displayed Pride flags, reducing the singer to tears in response. 

In April, South Korean entertainment company Big Hit Entertainment filed a suit to prevent sales of counterfeit merchandise related to the current world tour of the company’s biggest act, boy band BTS. The complaint was filed in California federal court and according to TheFashionLaw.com asserts that Big Hit Entertainment “possesses the exclusive right to use, or authorize the use of, the [BTS} name in connection with the production, distribution and sale of various types of music-related merchandise” connected with the band’s tour.

The suit is seen as a preemptive move given BTS’s enormous popularity and sudden international exposure. Big Hit assumes that counterfeiters and bootleggers will be out in force in the vicinity where BTS is performing, selling merchandise in violation of the group’s trademark rights and Big Hit’s exclusive agreement with Live Nation Merchandise, Inc. 

The website says that such lawsuits are very common, but that the stakes in this case are higher than usual since BTS is currently “one of the most popular and successful musical acts worldwide,” as pointed out in the complaint. 

The ticketing startup Zaiko, which is so far active in Tokyo and Singapore, is currently participating in a funding round that has snagged investments from venture-capital firm North Base Media and Japanese entertainment company Space Shower Networks, according to IQ Magazine.

The Zaiko platform allows event organizers, venues and artists direct-to-fan ticketing services, in addition to data that can be used to market future events and releases. The service is available in a variety of languages, with more being added all the time. Promoters can sell tickets through their own platforms or offer them through Zaiko’s network of digital media partners and “influencers” while tracking the most effective means of selling and promotion. According to the company, this “two-sided” approach gives media partners “a new revenue stream through both ticket commissions and the possibility of upselling promotions.”

At present, ticketing in Japan is mainly controlled by three services: Ticket Pia, e+ and Lawson HMV Entertainment. Zaiko will provide more ways for fans to purchase tickets through simple media links that can bypass the three services, which often involve complex procedures and extra fees.