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NFT tickets are an innovative solution for the events industry that allows secure and transparent ticketing. At its core, an NFT ticket can act as a Web3 bridge for the events industry, thereby unlocking massive potential for the space.
From giving event organizers, direct access to their event attenders to providing a secure and easy to control ticketing system, NFT tickets can also enable event organizers to access alternative forms of financing and fundraising for events.
With the past year bringing about an overwhelming amount of mainstream attention to NFTs, NFT tickets have been touted as a pillar application of NFTs that could lead to mass adoption.
In this regard, GET Protocol (the leading provider of NFT ticketing) has served ticket buyers in more than 120 countries worldwide. The platform is credited for making NFTs in ticketing easier than ever with its so-called battle-tested and fine-tuned products for non-crypto savvy users.
In this article, we will take a deep dive into the benefits and risks presented by NFT tickets and a look into GET Protocol and its main features.
What are NFT tickets?
Simply put, an NFT is a digital asset that is stored on a blockchain. NFTs can represent anything from digital art to in-game items and everything in between.
NFTs have unique properties that make them attractive for use cases such as ticketing. With NFTs, whoever has the private key owns the NFT. There is no need for a third party to hold or manage the asset.
Not needing to manage the ticket contrasts with traditional ticketing systems where tickets are usually centrally managed and controlled by the ticket issuer. The fact that NFTs are stored on a blockchain also means that they are immutable and cannot be counterfeited. Every NFT is unique and has a verifiable history.
All of these properties make NFTs an attractive solution for ticketing.
What are the benefits of NFT tickets?
The global events industry was valued at USD 886.99 Billion in 2020 and is estimated to reach $2,194.40 billion globally by 2028. After the devastating effect on the sector due to the pandemic, the adoption of NFT ticketing can be a game-changing recovery moment for the industry.
NFT tickets offer several advantages for event organizers, such as providing direct access to event attendees. Event organizers can sell tickets directly to attendees without going through a third-party ticketing agency.
This direct access also allows event organizers to manage their events better. With NFT tickets, event organizers can more easily track who is attending their events and offer attendees custom experiences based on their preferences.
Another critical advantage of NFT tickets for event organizers is using NFTs to raise funds for their events. Event organizers can sell tickets in advance of an event and use the proceeds to finance the event.
NFT tickets are more secure than traditional tickets for event attendees, given that they are stored on a blockchain. Smart contracts also add a layer of security to NFT tickets as the tickets can be coded to prevent ticket scalpers who often buy large quantities and resell them at a higher price at the expense of the attendees.
Event attendees can also benefit from having NFT tickets as collectibles that grant access to virtual communities and rewards.
GET Protocol
GET Protocol is undoubtedly one of the most popular and well-established digital ticketing platforms. This is an open-source protocol that provides digital ticketing infrastructure.
The protocol was founded by Maarten Bloemers and his team back in 2016 and soon after, GUTS Tickets was launched as the first product on top of the GET Protocol. GUTS Tickets is a digital ticketing application that allows event organizers to sell tickets using smart contracts.
The platform offers a suite of products geared towards creating a service that puts the end-users first while hiding all the complexities of the underlying technology but with the benefits that come with blockchain technology and NFTs.
Since its inception, GET Protocol has served in more than 120 countries, facilitated digital ticketing in over 200 events, and worked with 423 unique artists and organizers.
GET Protocol offers products across the entire spectrum of ticketing ranging from unrivaled, verifiable data on ticket ownership for improved marketing efforts to insight into an event’s primary and secondary ticket sales. Moreover, any ticketing company can integrate with GET Protocol’s products to benefit its users with NFT tickets.
What’s more, GET Protocol also offers an event financing module that let’s small, and independent ticketing companies have access to financial tools usually reserved for the big players in the industry. Using decentralized finance, GET Protocol allows its users, through its native GET Token, to get the capital needed to produce events.
Risks beyond the hype
GET Protocol has received overwhelming interest with public figures and celebrities such as Lupe Fiasco, Gucci Mane, and Holland’s comedy sensation Jochem Myler coming onboard.
However, despite the hype, NFT tickets are not without risks. First and foremost is the cost of minting and transferring NFTs from wallet to wallet. With the congestion of popular smart contract blockchain networks like Ethereum, making micro-transactions through sales and NFT transfers can be costly for users.
In addition, as with any new technology, NFT tickets are vulnerable to abuse such as spoofing, deceitful bidding, and phishing attacks. According to a recent report by Chainalysis, there is a prevalence of money laundering in NFT markets. The report shows that over $1 million worth of Ethereum-based NFTs were purchased using illicit funds in the fourth quarter of 2021 alone.
Are NFT tickets worth it?
Overall, the use of NFT tickets comes with many benefits as well as some risks.
The main benefits include increased security, transparency, and accuracy of data collection, not to mention convenience for attendees through lifetime benefits that come with owning an NFT ticket. However, like any other evolving technology, NFT ticketing faces challenges such as vulnerability to abuse and attacks.
What’s important to remember is that NFT ticketing is still in its early stages of development with a lot of growth potential. As the technology matures and platforms such as GET Protocol work to improve efficiency, we can expect more innovation and better solutions to the current problems.
For now, it’s certainly worth considering.