Music festival Coachella sold NFTs in 2022 that gave collectors physical art prints and photo books through a partnership with FTX. It also released a set of ten NFTs that guarantee lifetime passes to Coachella. The ten ‘Coachella Keys’ sold for a combined $1.4 million.
After the collapse of FTX and the shutdown of its web servers, the NFTs began displaying blank images, while associated websites directed users to information about the company’s bankruptcy.
But despite these early setbacks, Coachella is giving NFTs a second try.
Read more: FTX NFTs are MIA: A Lesson in Centralized Risk
The festival will allow some fans to purchase NFTs and gain access to VIP areas and exclusive merchandise during this year’s rendition of the Indio, CA concert week. The NFTs that live on the Avalanche blockchain are sold through a partnership with OpenSea.
In an email, Coachella innovation lead Sam Schoonover told Blockworks that the Coachella team “has been working with the owners of all Lifetime Pass Coachella Key NFTs to ensure their benefits continue to be honored and that they have new, reissued Receiving NFTs.”
Schoonover added that despite the fallout from the FTX, the 2022 NFT program “clearly struck a positive chord with Coachella fans.” Shoonover called OpenSea a “trusted, safe and secure partner” to make a second attempt at cracking utility NFTs.
Read more: OpenSea launches platform aimed at ‘professional’ NFT collectors
Coachella is planning three NFT drops in the coming weeks with Coachella-focused benefits for holders. Coachella itself takes place from April 12 to 21.
OpenSea has established ticketing partnerships in the past, mainly in the Web3 space. NFT.NYC released tickets on the platform in 2023. But Coachella is a notable partner for the marketplace as it tries to right the ship after a rocky 2023.
OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer told Blockworks in an email that live events are “one of the verticals where we see tremendous potential.”
It’s also an NFT integration for Avalanche, which seems to be giving a real boost to ticket sales. Last week, Sports Illustrated Tickets announced it was migrating its blockchain ticketing platform to Avalanche, and developer Ava Labs had purchased a stake in the company.
Read more: Sports Illustrated Tickets is moving its NFT service to Avalanche
NFT trading volume fell by $14.5 billion in 2023 compared to the previous year, Blockworks previously reported. At the time, industry watchers told Blockworks that NFTs that have utility beyond price speculation would be key to a turnaround in the space’s fortunes.
This updated version of Coachella NFTs, which pairs collectibles with exclusive experiences and merchandise, is a step in that direction.
“This is our second year offering this to Coachella fans and we expect their response to be as positive as ever. We know fans don’t care about the technology, they just want to have fun. So that’s what we want to offer,” said Schoonover.