HOUSTON — At the Houston Astros home opener on Thursday, there will be a new, faster way for fans to get through the gates of Minute Maid Park.
Major League Baseball's new Go-Ahead Entry uses facial recognition technology to identify fans with tickets. It allows them to bypass the long lines and breeze into the ballpark without stopping to have their ticket scanned.
Here's how it works.
- Set up an account on the MLB Ballpark app if you don't already have one.
- Snap a selfie with the app
- That image is converted into a unique alphanumeric code, and then the image itself is deleted. This code, also known as a token, is associated with the respective fan’s account.
- Tickets will be uploaded to the app
- The device at the gate will compare their face to the ticketholder's face in the app.
“We don’t store any of the images of fans," MLB's Karri Zaremba explained. "So it’s just a token that’s stored on their ballpark account so there’s no other way for it to be utilized.”
Go-Ahead entry is now available at all Minute Maid gates.
“We are always looking for ways to improve our fan experience at Minute Maid Park, and the addition of this technology provides a way for our fans to have a more streamlined way to enter the stadium, adding to a better ballpark experience," Astros Senior VP of Business Operations Marcel Braithwaite said.
The technology had a successful test run in the Phillies ballpark last season. Fans who used it went through 68% faster than the traditional lines, according to MLB.
Fans who enroll can use Go-Ahead Entry at any MLB ballpark with the technology.
Fans will also have the option to enter with traditional ticket scanning methods.
You can find answers to FAQs here.