The previous week, the New York Attorney General's office dispatched a letter to Madison Square Garden Entertainment, seeking explanations. The state's top law enforcement body aims to understand the application of a face recognition system at Radio City Music Hall and the iconic arena of the NBA's Knicks. The system has been employed to restrict entry to specific individuals, especially attorneys representing clients in disputes with Madison Square Garden. The letter expresses concerns that this ban, covering staff from 90 law firms, might deter thousands from handling cases, including those related to sexual harassment or employment discrimination.
Since the recent revelation of the face recognition system, MSG's management has steadfastly defended the use of facial algorithms for entrance verification. In an unsigned statement, the company asserts that its system is not an attack on lawyers, acknowledging that while some may be considered as 'ambulance chasers and money grabbers.'
The implementation of face recognition at the venue highlights the growing adoption of this technology at sporting events. This trend is fueled by the desire to swiftly authenticate the identity of ticket holders for quick entry into stadiums and concert venues. However, civil rights groups caution that face recognition, initially intended for seemingly harmless purposes, could be repurposed for more concerning applications.
MSG initiated the use of facial recognition to identify potential security threats in 2018. During the same year, the New York Mets and New York Yankees participated in a biometric identification trial at nine ballparks conducted by Major League Baseball and Clear, a company offering streamlined identity verification at 50 airports in Canada and the US.
The initial Mets face recognition trial focused on verifying the identity of players and staff entering the stadium. By the end of the 2021 season, the Mets expanded the technology's use to a select number of season ticket holders. Starting March 2023, marking a first for an MLB team, all fans will have the option to use face recognition for entry into Citi Field.
The Mets are exploring additional applications for the technology, such as enabling fans to make payments for food and drinks using facial recognition, according to Oscar Fernandez, VP of Technology. However, the primary purpose of the entry program is not to restrict access to any specific group. Fernandez clarifies, “This program is solely about using your ticket to enter the stadium.
While Madison Square Garden employs face recognition to prevent the entry of previously banned individuals—and certain lawyers—many stadium and entertainment center operators are experimenting with the technology to facilitate entry. Reducing wait times for ticket holders was cited as the rationale for a 2018 pilot by Ticketmaster and a similar test in 2022 by ASM Global, the operator of over 300 stadiums and entertainment venues worldwide.
Companies developing face recognition systems for stadiums also promote them as effective in curbing ticket scalping. Some football clubs in the US and Europe have adopted face recognition to minimize the need for touching public surfaces, reducing the risk of spreading Covid-19.
The installation of face recognition for a specific purpose, such as airports, illustrates its potential for adaptation to other uses. Delta Airlines initially introduced face recognition for self-service bag drops in 2017, and its application expanded to ticketing and security. Face scans are now being used to display personalized flight itineraries on airport screens and enhance certain in-flight services. Clear also provides services to Major League Soccer venues like BMO Stadium, the home of Los Angeles FC.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta initiated a small pilot of face recognition for entry last summer with up to 100 season ticket holders for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. The program is set to expand to 36,000 season ticket holders of Atlanta United FC when the MLS season commences at the end of February.
In Atlanta, a red carpet is rolled out to create an exclusive atmosphere for face recognition entry and generate interest from fans. However, Karl Pierburg, CTO for AMB Sports and Entertainment, which owns the two teams and Mercedes-Benz Stadium, emphasizes, “I don’t want to require a face to do anything.” The company executives are exploring ways to utilize face recognition to enhance operational efficiency around the stadium but only if individuals choose to participate. This may include age verification for alcohol sales or for purchasing food and merchandise. AMB is also considering alternatives such as handprints or Bluetooth signals from a smartphone app for ticketing and payments.
Despite high expectations for the technology, Mercedes-Benz Stadium does not employ face recognition to restrict access or ban individuals from entry. According to Pierburg, this approach was experimented with by a French football club in 2020.
“I don't think we would touch that,” he states. “Not that the safety of our fans isn't important, but when you start generally scanning, there's a line there that we've got to really make sure we're comfortable crossing before we go to it.” Pierburg emphasizes the distinction between mass surveillance without consent and providing individuals with the option to participate in a system that reduces their time spent in line.
Any entry system, including face recognition, can be repurposed for exclusion. Albert Fox Cahn, executive director of the nonprofit Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, emphasizes the potential for mission creep, whether face recognition is implemented by a government or a private entity. Cahn has been involved in face recognition debates in New York, addressing its use by the NYPD during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, as well as its deployment in apartment buildings and public housing.
Fox Cahn anticipates the emergence of a biometric economy in stadiums, enabling features such as personalized advertising reminiscent of Minority Report. However, the capacity to track individuals on a large scale also introduces the potential for control and surveillance, powers susceptible to misuse.
“Facial recognition equips the affluent and influential with tools that could be wielded against all of us, and I'm deeply concerned about the myriad applications we might witness,” he expresses. Even when a stadium deploys the technology solely for commercial purposes, “every private sector database is one court order away from being transformed into a policing tool.”
The use of face recognition in private venues hosting tens of thousands of people raises ethical questions about applying the technology to a crowd without their explicit consent. Similar concerns were raised during a search for stalkers in the audience at a Taylor Swift concert in 2018.
In August 2020, a panel of three UK appeal judges ruled that the South Wales Police violated a man’s privacy and human rights by subjecting him to face recognition without consent. The system, deployed at Cardiff City stadium during a 2017 UEFA Champions League game, misidentified over 90 percent of individuals.
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