Image commercially licensed from: Unsplash
By Hunter Abramson, CEO — Relic Tickets
Anyone who has tried to purchase tickets lately would likely agree that the ticketing industry is due for some improvements. That could be a massive understatement, given the recent mess that occurred with Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour or Bad Bunny’s show in Mexico.
The issues that the ticket industry has experienced are not new concerns. Rather, the industry has experienced ongoing problems since the 1990s. Scalpers and black market sellers have created a market of inflated prices and an industry rife with scams, and a customer service focus has been put aside in favor of a focus on profit and monopolization. The current state of ticketing is needlessly complicated and not smooth, leading to frustration for fans who simply want to see their favorite artists and save their ticket stubs like millions of music and theater fans and eventgoers have for generations.
Online ticketing is projected to grow into a $68 billion industry by 2025. However, an infusion of technological advancements is doing little to improve the number of marks against the ticketing industry as a whole. To change the ticketing industry and bring it into the Web3 age, technology and practical improvements need to be combined to return focus to the consumer.
Saving stubs
Even as recently as a few years ago, people were still issued paper tickets for admission to events. When the event was over, typically, all people had were their memories and that paper stub to save in their scrapbooks.
The digital revolution has changed how people receive event tickets and how we save event memories. An Instagram post outside the event may suffice for most, but there are many who miss saving their stubs.
Web3 has given eventgoers options in this age of digital tickets. With NFT tickets, buyers can preserve their digital ticket information and entire event history. Digital stubs can be kept on the blockchain and provide proof of attendance. In addition, a direct communicative link to the artist is created. Digital advancements sometimes have a way of distancing artists from their fans, but this advancement will collapse that distance, allowing fans to get closer to the artists they enjoy the most.
Digital ticket stubs work by creating a keepsake in the ticketholder’s Ethereum-based digital wallet. These keepsakes create additional value for fans who have already created a community around the artists they love or the events they are excited to attend.
The rise in NFT popularity & its place in ticketing
As of 2021, the NFT market has reached $15 billion in sales. At one time, even the mere concept of NFTs was something few understood. However, understanding the purpose and benefits of NFTs has since expanded, with more people jumping on board the NFT train. Given the uproar over ticketing’s various issues, the ticketing industry is ripe for disruption. NFT ticketing creates additional value for fans and eventgoers that stretches beyond simply attending the event. Involvement in the metaverse also works to help build fan-based communities that endure long after the event has ended.
The technology behind NFT ticketing, such as the technology we use with Relic Tickets, utilizes a decentralized, shared ledger to record and authenticate event tickets meaning the history of the sold ticket is recorded and unchangeable. The NFT can change hands, and the authenticity and ownership of the NFT can still be verified through blockchain authentication. With ticket scalping scams prevalent in the industry, NFT ticketing allows ownership to be non-negotiable. This extra security measure assures that tickets cannot be double-sold or unknowingly assigned to a non-owner. Anyone who regularly attends concerts, games, or other events could tell you that event tickets are pricey; the extra protection afforded to buyers by NFT ticketing allows buyers to feel more secure spending hundreds — sometimes thousands — on events.
The value of NFT tickets is retained after the event, as well. For one, collectible stubs for popular events could be sold on a secondary marketplace, and the community built around the fanbase is also an added post-event bonus. The options could be endless for artists who could creatively use Web3, the metaverse, and NFT capabilities to connect with their fanbase better.
With all of the issues experienced within the ticketing industry as of late, the value of experience, connection, and even just being a loyal fan of a band, artist, or team has been somewhat diluted. When purchasing a ticket is a frustrating experience or one that leaves people open to being taken advantage of and being left with nothing when it’s all said and done, they may be hesitant to seek out these life experiences. The emergence of Web3 and NFT capabilities is bringing expertise and community back to the forefront. Once again, concerts, games, and other events can be moments we preserve and ways of connecting us to our fellow artists. Instead of commiserating over the frustrating ticket-buying experience, communities can get back to talking about the music or their favorite player.
The value that NFT ticketing brings to the industry is long overdue. The future of ticketing is not only digital but preservable and memorable, disrupting an industry that has been in need of change.
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