The end of traditional festival wristbands?

2012 has only just begun, but the buzz surrounding this year’s music festival has gone into overdrive.

But one of the hottest debated topics isn’t the acts who will be playing the festivals. Everyone is discussing which wristband they will be wearing when they go to their respective festival. 
Will they be the same entry wristbands as used in previous years or the new micro chipped wristbands?

The new micro chipped wristbands that have caught the attention of festival organisers worldwide were designed by Canadian company Intellitix. 

The wristbands designed by Intellitix appear normal but are fitted with a microchip. And the wristbands work in the same way as London's Oyster card public transport swipe cards. Festival-goers are registered in and out of venues with either turnstiles or hand-held devices scanning their wristbands, with organisers able to track the data.

But for all the positives of the microchip wristband, there are people who have doubts about the wristbands. One of those is Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis.

Eavis does not have concerns for the wristbands themselves. His concerns lie in the message that the micro chipped wristbands send out. Eavis is concerned that if these micro chipped wristbands are introduced that music festivals would become too commercial. In a recent interview he was quoted as saying that "I don't want to take people into a land they don't want to go into.”

But what do you think?

Are micro chipped wristbands the way forward?

Please leave a comment below.