We have briefly been taught what a non-fungible token (NFT) is and the most mainstream way that it is being used, to buy monkeys. However, this misses important ways that NFT could be used, as I do not believe the NFT craze as we know of will last. Let me introduce to you NFT ticketing (or tickets). This blog post will focus on physical concerts.
So, as we know by now, with NFT you can own something digital, and you can prove that you are the sole owner of the NFT (Wang, Wang, and Chen, 2021). This technology should be implemented when selling concert tickets as it will reap the benefits of the technology. But why and how?
Firstly, most concert tickets (although not as many in the Netherlands) are being sold through intermediate ticket sellers (such as Live Nations) rather than directly from the venue to the customer. This leads to higher prices, but with the help of NFT, tickets should be able to be sold directly from the venue to the customer as they would have full control of the tickets and sell using blockchain. It would also lead to faster and more secure transfer of tickets (Howell, 2022).
Secondly, most of you have probably been trying to buy concert tickets to a show that is sold out and therefore have to put your trust in people you do not know if you want to get tickets. You might not go to a show because it is sold out and do not want to risk buying a ticket that might out being fake or owned by many people (as the owner sold it to more than one person). With blockchain and NFT, you will know that the person selling the ticket has a real ticket and that it will be transferred to you therefore you will be the sole owner of the digital ticket. It will lead to a more secure secondhand marketplace.
NFT ticketing is still new and there is not much research regarding the subject, but I think it is really interesting (and I am not really interested in NFT in general). I believe it can be implemented in the future and that we can go to all the shows we wish to go to!
References
Wang, Q., Li, R., Wang, Q., & Chen, S. (2021). Non-fungible token (NFT): Overview, evaluation, opportunities and challenges. arXiv preprint arXiv:2105.07447
Howell, C. (2022). NFT Ticketing: The Happy Medium for Venues, Live Entertainers, and Fans.
Hey, thank you for introducing this NFT ticketing possibility. I completely agree with what you write. I would furthermore explore the possibilities of NFT ticketing such as smart contracts. Can provide. For example, the rarity of a ticket could be interesting to resale as something valuable. Imagine you have the ticket of Avici’s backstage ticket of his last concert. The scarcity would lead to value. Additionally, smart contracts could affect the ticket buyers himself. Imagine they generate a high profit and repay the ‘shareholder’ which could be the ticket owners with benefits or money. They could also program that as soon as you spend this amount of money you get certain bonuses. Efficiency at it’s best if everything is connected together and automized with tech.