Ticketmaster prepares to scale up its experimental NFT-gated ticketing concept after a successful run with Avenged Sevenfold.
Ticketmaster announced that its Ethereum NFT token-gating feature is now live for artists, enabling holders of specific tokens to receive special features like event access and considerable discounts. First tested with the Ethereum-based Deathbats Club NFTs, 10,000 of which were minted for heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold, Ticketmaster has thus far minted almost 15 million digital collectibles tied to events.
“In Avenged Sevenfold’s case, owners of the 10,000 Deathbats Club Ethereum NFTs were offered early access to buy tickets to the band’s upcoming New York City and Los Angeles arena shows in June,” reads a report from crypto newsletter Decrypt. “Frontman Matt Sanders — who goes by M. Shadows — said that about 1,000 total tickets were purchased between the two shows with the NFT-gating feature.”
“It went incredible,” says Sanders, who explains that Ticketmaster prompts users during the purchasing process to connect a digital wallet to verify ownership of one of the eligible NFTs. “It’s a normal process after that, except without the 1,000-person queue and without the scalpers and the bots getting in there and taking everything right away.”
One Deathbat NFT holder tweeted a screenshot showing they had saved around $540 in service fees using the token, effectively placing them at the front of the ticket-buying line. The tokens then extend special discounts if programmed to do so, as for specific shows on Avenged Sevenfold’s North American tour.
Sanders was instrumental in creating NFT-gating capabilities after meeting with David Marcus, Ticketmaster’s EVP of global music, at the 2022 NFT LA conference, which is now called Outer Edge LA.
“Linking to live shows creates a unique value, and we developed our token-gating capabilities based on how artists want to connect their communities to their concerts,” says Marcus.
Ticketmaster has reportedly minted almost 15 million digital collectibles tied to events, including NFL games, utilizing the Flow blockchain and Ethereum-scaling network Polygon. The token-gating feature is now available to any artist with a current NFT collection or partnered with an NFT community. The functionality is also available to unlock other benefits for fans.
