‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ NFT Add-On Crashes AMC, Fandango Sites — What Does That Mean for Future of Metaverse Sales?
Spider-Man broke the internet last week. Or, more accurately, advance ticket sales for the upcoming Sony Pictures, Marvel Studios and Columbia Pictures collaboration, “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” crashed both the AMC and Fandango websites, Quartz reported.
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Sony and AMC Theatres collaborated in a marketing promotion offering non-fungible tokens to the first 86,000 people who purchased advance tickets and were members of AMC’s Premiere, A-List or Investor Connect programs. No doubt, many people love Spidey, and the trailers for the latest flick look absolutely incredible. But the NFTs seem to account for a large part of the attraction and the flurry of advance ticket sales.
Quartz reported that scalpers started offering up the tickets at prices ranging from $200 to $25,000. Since that is far more than the market value of any movie ticket — even the next in the Marvel Cinematic Universe saga — it’s clear that people are paying for the NFT rather than the ticket. So far, Quartz reported, no one has bid on the higher-priced tickets, but the auctions are still open, with hopeful scalpers waiting to see just how valuable the public thinks these NFTs could become.
There is a catch to collecting the digital art, however. In order to collect the animated design, which comes in 108 variations, your ticket must be scanned at a movie theater. Once the buyer has their ticket scanned, they will receive an email with a code. To get their NFT, they’ll redeem the code on the Wax blockchain.
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While Sony and Spider-Man may be leading the charge on this new trend, Warner Bros. is also introducing NFTs for the upcoming release of “The Matrix Resurrections.” These NFTs will be interactive, unlocking various functions as time goes on.
Mike Rubin, founder of Dreamium Labs, a Los Angeles-based NFT startup, told Quartz, “The next phase will be interactivity and more personalized fan engagement with their favorite movie characters.”
Hollywood executives are hoping these kinds of promotions can breathe new life into slumping ticket sales. The New York Times reported that theaters have lost 49% of their pre-pandemic customer base. And projections say that at least 8% will never return to theaters. But if pre-ticket sales for “Spider-Man: No Way Home” are any indication, movie theaters could face a brighter future.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ NFT Add-On Crashes AMC, Fandango Sites — What Does That Mean for Future of Metaverse Sales?
