With just three weeks left before the Osaka Expo closes, demand for admission has reached a fever pitch, and scalpers are cashing in.
Tickets are nearly sold out, with concentrated access to the site making it extremely difficult for customers to snag any remaining tickets. Adding to this is the rule for the Osaka Expo that visitors must reserve a specific date and time for entry after buying their tickets, and most entry slots have been filled.
This has left some people stuck with what are called ¡°shiniken,¡± or ¡°dead tickets¡± where they paid for a ticket but cannot book any slots to enter.
In response, hundreds of tickets have been listed for resale on Yahoo Japan auctions as of Wednesday morning, with many being advertised at prices much higher than official standards. For example, one adult 9 a.m. entry ticket for Oct. 5, originally ?7,500 ($50), was selling for ?59,000 on the site ¡ª over seven times the official cost.
¡°We remove listings that violate the ticket resale prevention law or our guidelines as they are identified,¡± said Akari Ueno, a spokesperson for LY, which operates Yahoo Japan auctions. ¡°This also applies to expo tickets.¡±
The Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition has warned that tickets purchased outside official channels cannot be used to enter the expo.
¡°Tickets not purchased through official channels are prohibited and aren¡¯t valid,¡± the association said on the expo¡¯s official website, urging the public not to buy from resellers.
Under expo rules, transfers are allowed only to family, friends or colleagues, and only if the ticket is sold at face value or less. Resales or transfers to unspecified buyers are banned.
However, these strict conditions have done little to curb the rush of resellers online. Auction sites and flea-market apps are now awash with listings for last-minute tickets.
With entry slots nearly gone, some of the tickets advertised may not lead to entry into the expo, which could cause some desperate buyers to fall victim to outright scams.
Mercari, the country¡¯s leading flea-market app, said ticket sales are banned outright.
¡°Expo tickets are not allowed to be listed. If a case is identified, we take action such as canceling the transaction or deleting the item,¡± the company said in a statement.
The Osaka Expo, which opened in April, closes Oct. 13.
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