The Pokémon Company is introducing facial-recognition checks at some Japanese Pokémon Card Store locations to stop scalpers exploiting entry and purchase limits. The move shows how severe demand and resale activity have become in the Pokémon trading-card market, while raising privacy concerns because customers must provide biometric data to shop.

The system will apply to customers of primary-school age and above when they collect an entry ticket and enter the shop, limiting each person to one ticket and one entry per day. It is being used at five temporary stores opening on 31 July and running until 16 August, in Miyagi, Tokyo, Aichi, Hiroshima and Fukuoka; customers who refuse facial recognition cannot enter or receive a ticket. The company says it will record facial-image data and visit counts, manage them appropriately and delete them after a set period.