The $65-billion event ticketing industry is riddled with skulduggery, but NFT technology can transform it for the common good, writes Josh Katz of Yellowheart.
While there’s been a lot of new music
released since the 1970s, the fact that scalpers, brokers and rent-seeking
middlemen are making money at the expense of artists and venues hasn’t changed
one bit.
Technology has transformed the way we
shop, work and interact with media to an almost unrecognizable extent. However,
the way we interact with concert tickets has changed little since barcodes were
first introduced in the 1970s. Despite the fact that the ticketing industry is
now worth an estimated US$65 billion, you’d be
hard-pressed to find an industry more rife with fraud. Ticketing fraud was even
blamed for the influx of crowds at the now-infamous Champions League final in Paris, where
police deployed tear gas to disperse the masses.
While smaller changes, such as the
shift to Web 2.0, haven’t cleaned up the industry, the shift to Web 3.0 could succeed where Web2
failed.
What makes Web3 different?
Web 1.0 refers to the early internet
of the ’90s, while Web2 is the current state of the internet, dominated by
streaming and social media and controlled by a relatively small handful of
companies. Web3 is set to center around interconnected networks, such as a
blockchain, to allow people to transfer data and value to each other directly.
One of Web3’s most prominent assets,
non-fungible tokens (NFTs), have managed to make a significant
impact on a number of industries in a short time period. In fact, the NFT
market surpassed US$40 billion in 2021.
With NFTs, every transaction is fully
disclosed on a blockchain that cannot be falsified or manipulated, which allows
artists to see how their NFT tickets are being sold across their entire
lifecycle.
Along with this, artists are able to
determine if their tickets can be resold on the blockchain. If they decide to
make them available on the secondary market, they’re able to select a set
resale price, and ensure they get a fair cut.
Strengthening the connection between
artists and fans
NFTs can also provide a new source of
value for fans, allowing them to treat tickets as souvenirs that won’t get lost
or damaged, since they’re not a piece of paper. Imagine having tickets to
historic music events like Woodstock or The Beatles’ final gig — NFTs allow
this type of empowered ownership to be a reality.
NFTs can also function as a new way to
add another layer of personalization that can help artists build a more nuanced
relationship with fans. This could mean rewarding concertgoers with perks,
discounts to future events, and even merchandise. NFTs can also serve as a way
to add some color to the otherwise humdrum process of checking in. For example,
the ticket could morph into a new color scheme or become animated when scanned.
Popular music festival Coachella
earlier this year was among the first to trial NFT ticketing and even
programmed the tickets to deliver exclusive perks to holders, including posters
and other memorabilia. Some of these NFTs even blossomed into rare digital
flowers, which users could then swap for weekend passes for the 2023 festival.
MGM Resorts’ Jabbawockeez show also
utilized NFT tickets to offer airdropped food and drink tokens, along with a
special memento the next day. (Yellowheart was behind these NFT tickets, which
are no longer for sale.) Since everything on the blockchain is transparent,
fans were also able to find and connect with each other after events, bringing
community building to a whole new level.
Event ticketing in the future
It’s an exciting time for the live
events industry because of the benefits NFT tickets have already brought to the
table. With time, as the technology becomes even more advanced and is adopted
by more artists and venues, the possibilities will be truly endless. Industry
players that leverage NFT ticketing early will act as leaders in the space and
reap the benefits of the technology the quickest.
The big issues within the ticketing
industry — trust and transparency — will soon become things of the past. As
more venues and live-ticketed events discover the benefits that NFT tickets can
bring to the table, these use cases will only continue to grow. Given the
possibilities that are made available surrounding authenticity and veracity,
this seems like an inevitable evolution for the format. The fact that both
artists and venues are getting on board only highlights the relevance of this
shift all the more. Modern ticketing needs to be as in touch with the 21st
century as modern entertainment is, and embracing NFTs seems like the most
logical next step.
Source: forkast.news