From Tickets to Guides, Get All Your Sightseeing Assistance on LINE The “Fukuoka City Full Support Verification Test Project” Adopts LINE Group Proposals for “Tourism and Transportation Tech”
A national first for LINE in an effort to make MaaS for tourism a reality
LINE Corporation (“LINE”; Location: Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo; Representative Director, President, and Chief Executive Officer: Takeshi Idezawa), it’s LINE-based e-ticketing service development subsidiary, LINE TICKET (“LINE TICKET”; Location: Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo; Representative Director and Chief Executive Officer: Jun Masuda) and Fukuoka-based subsidiary, LINE Fukuoka Corporation (“LINE Fukuoka”; Location: Hakata Ward, Fukuoka; Representative Director, President, and Chief Executive Officer: Noritaka Ochiai) are pleased to announce that the “Fukuoka City Full Support Verification Test Project” adopted the LINE Group’s proposals in the “Tourism and Transportation Tech” field for projects aimed at making mobility as a service (MaaS) for tourism a reality in Fukuoka.
The “Fukuoka City Full Support Verification Test Project” launched in 2016, and calls for verification testing proposals from all over the country that utilize advanced technologies such as AI and IoT to solve social issues. Furthermore, the project offers full support for verification tests held in Fukuoka.
This time around, the project called for proposals related to “Tourism and Transportation Tech” with the goal of increasing the appeal of urban areas. The LINE Group proposed projects that assist with Fukuoka City tourism and the movement that goes along with it all on the LINE app, and the following two projects were adopted.
| Proposals called for | Proposals called for Content of the LINE Group’s proposals Trial period¹ | Trial period¹ | |
| 1 | Projects aiming to promote tourism, increase the number of visitors and improve convenience for them by digitizing Fukuoka City cultural attraction admission tickets. | A dedicated account that utilizes the LINE TICKET e-ticketing service to let users purchase and pay for admission tickets in advance as well as transition to them seamlessly from the account. | June 2020 – End of March 2021 |
| 2 | 2 Projects that contribute to considerations of new ways to buy transportation tickets utilizing contactless payment or a one-day unlimited use on-device subway ticket for certain areas. A dedicated account that lets users buy mobile tickets and present them to ride the train, and the addition of a feature to introduce popular locations near subway lines. August 2020 – End of November 2020 | A dedicated account that lets users buy mobile tickets and present them to ride the train, and the addition of a feature to introduce popular locations near subway lines. | 2 Projects that contribute to considerations of new ways to buy transportation tickets utilizing contactless payment or a one-day unlimited use on-device subway ticket for certain areas. A dedicated account that lets users buy mobile tickets and present them to ride the train, and the addition of a feature to introduce popular locations near subway lines. August 2020 – End of November 2020 |
¹The trial period was set during the call for proposals, and may change due to circumstances related to COVID-19 or other factors.
Content of the LINE Group’s proposals
Aiming to make MaaS for tourism a reality by offering assistance in one convenient place on LINE
The projects the LINE Group proposed will support services and solve the issues of:
• “Going cashless and enabling users to buy e-tickets for cultural attractions in Fukuoka City”; and
• “Creating new ways to sell tickets for the Fukuoka City subway” through one LINE official account.
In the verification test, we will open a dedicated LINE official account that lets users buy admission tickets for museums or limited-time offer subway tickets and use them as mobile tickets, all on LINE.
By offering a “Smart Tourism” experience where users do not need to download or use a different app for everything they want to do, LINE is aiming to realize the vision of MaaS for tourism in Fukuoka City.
Furthermore, by guiding users to Fukuoka City’s official LINE account (which is equipped with features like “Evacuation Action Support” [避難行動支援] if a disaster hits), the LINE Group has set its sights on making Fukuoka a city that anyone can conveniently and comfortably visit with just the LINE app.
The LINE Group will continue to leverage its cutting-edge technologies in areas such as AI and FinTech in order to make a prosperous and convenient Smart City a reality through co-creation projects with the city and its residents.
<About the “LINE SMART CITY FOR FUKUOKA” project>
In accordance with the Comprehensive Partnership Agreement between LINE Fukuoka and Fukuoka City, the LINE Group is aiming to realize the goal of making Fukuoka a “Smart City” that everyone can be proud of.
LINE and Fukuoka City co-created the Fukuoka City Official LINE account (LINE ID: ＠fukuokacity ) to meet the needs of each citizen and deliver the information they need, including emergency information (such as evacuation recommendations), trash pick-up day notifications for each area, age-specific childcare information, and more through the account.
We developed the Evacuation Action Support, “Childcare Assistance” (子育て案内), and “Garbage Separation Support” (ごみ分別案内) features and added them to the account through verification testing to give residents access to helpful information when they need it.
The official “Fukuoka City Oversized Garbage Reservations” (福岡市粗大ごみ受付) LINE account （LINE ID :@fukuokacity_sdg） can also be used to request and pay the processing fee for oversized garbage pick up, all on the LINE platform.
At G20 FUKUOKA in 2019, we offered world leaders in FinTech a “No Search, No Translation, No Wallet” shopping experience through a dedicated LINE official account.