Access All Areas October 2022 | Page 31

“ NFTs do away with ‘ Zoom fatigue ’ and provide a place for personal expression and fun .”

OCTOBER | COVER FEATURE control ,” said SeatlabNFT CEO Ryan Kenny . “ We wanted to demonstrate that the opportunity to connect with fans begins when they buy tickets rather than ends as it does with current marketing and sales channels .”

SeatlabNFT recently appointed former Ticketmaster head of commercial partnerships Paul Kelly as head of global strategy , while Ticketmaster itself has announced that it has partnered with Flow blockchain to enable its clients to issue NFTs .
The operators of independent festival Lakefest are working with Steve Jenner ’ s blockchain and NFT specialist services operation MetaFests to use NFT technology at next year ’ s event .
Lee Martin , the founder and director of the 20,000-capacity festival , said the aim is to streamline operations and harness new revenue streams . Eventgoers will be able to use the NFTs to redeem on-site perks such as VIP upgrades , merchandise , F & B and meet-and-greets .
“ It will allow more effective connections with our audience , offering enhanced value to visitors , partners and artists ,” he said .
NFTs have been used at festivals for some time , most notably by Coachella . It sold NFTs providing holders with lifetime access , as well as exclusive on-site experiences and digital collectables . The event ’ s first NFT release in February generated almost $ 1.5 million in additional sales .
Senbla , the promoter of Cambridgebased Strawberries & Creem ( cap . 10,000 ), claims it was the first UK festival to offer NFT merch and experiences . For the 2021 event it partnered with NFT platform Serenade to allow consumers to buy tickets through NFTs and gain access to experiences during the event . Serenade has since announced a music industry advisory board that includes experienced concert promoter Toby Leighton-Pope .
Services such as MetaFests are hoping that the use of NFTs within the festival industry will snowball , but its founder Steve Jenner admits there is a “ mood of reserved caution around the hype ”.
Exploring the metaverse Since Facebook rebranded as Meta in October last year , the buzz around the Metaverse has remained pretty constant . The metaverse is a virtual world , made up of permanent , shared , 3D virtual spaces involving augmented ( AR ) and / or virtual reality ( VR ) technology .
Promoters and artists are embracing the virtual 3D ecosystem , not as a replacement for live events but rather as value-adds , with benefits including additional revenues and awareness building opportunities .
Recent exploits include the band Bastille partnering with EMI Records , creative agency WPP and Epic Games , to combine virtual production technologies and live performance to enable avatars to react with the band
“ NFTs do away with ‘ Zoom fatigue ’ and provide a place for personal expression and fun .”
– Jonathan Brigden as they performed live .
Among the most widely used metaverses by artists and event organisers are Fortnite , Roblox and The Sandbox . With 80 million users worldwide , it is hardly surprising that Fortnite has been used to host numerous shows by acts including Travis Scott and Marshmello , while London ’ s The O2 was recreated in Fortnite for a show by Easy Life .
Roblox has 20 million users who play a range of games on it created by other users . Unique , tailored , event experience can be created with customisable avatars . Countless acts have staged virtual shows on Roblox . The BRIT Awards hosted a metaverse VIP Party on it this year , and more recently DJ duo The Chainsmokers announced plans to invite Roblox players to create and perform in their own virtual music festival ( pictured on page 24 ).
A virtual world hosted on the Ethereum blockchain , The Sandbox has potential for micro payments and NFT usage . Such is the breadth of its appeal that it has partnered with clients as diverse as adidas , Snoop Dogg and the Care Bears .
Jonathan Brigden , MD at creative agency Studio Giggle , says , “ The experiences you design can become permanent , ever evolving company attractions that inform your live event , and provide an immersive meeting place for people and staff globally . They also do away with ‘ Zoom fatigue ’ and provide a place for personal expression and fun .”
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