When Should Entertainment Companies Get Involved in Metaverse?
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Big media and entertainment decision-makers need to be thinking years ahead for their investments to thrive. We also must acknowledge the major convergence of tech, media, and entertainment that’s been ongoing for years. The time has come for us to bring the three together in an ecosystem.
That’s why studio executives, major IP holders, and visionary creators are all scrambling to get in front of the next evolution of the internet.
The Web 3.0.
Many production studios and filmmakers are already taking advantage of NFTs to distribute and promote projects. We Are As Gods, a SXSW 2020 documentary by directors David Alvarado and Jason Sussberg, ran an NFT campaign that offered unique digital collectibles that will unlock a gated site where NFT holders can watch the film.
RRR, a 2022 Indian Telugu-language epic action drama film directed by S. S. Rajamouli launched its non-fungible token (NFT) ‘PVRRR’ by PVR Ltd in collaboration with DVV Entertainment.
Film goers who bought tickets of ‘RRR’ on PVR or SPI app or website, chanced to win six NFTs and own the exclusive digital collectibles of the movie and PVR selected 300 winning entries to assign NFTs to each winner through mobile and email. Very unrealistic use of NFT but still an experiment.
HeftyVerse, a Web 3.0 initiative by Hungama introduced Hefty Marketplace, an all-in-one-platform of NFTs, for the media & entertainment industry in India. It collaborated with India’s biggest superstar Ajay Devgn, to drop the first NFT game and digital collectibles of the lead trio of the movie.
Through Runway 34, Hefty is providing exclusive digital collectibles which users can wear across different Metaverses and also its own HeftyVerse. They still have to build on their plans though. Adding to that, it will also have a raffle where whoever wins can get a chance to own the physical assets used in the movie and stand a chance to get an exclusive virtual call with Ajay Devgn
Indie filmmaker Kevin Smith announced that he would auction off his entire horror feature anthology Killroy Was Here as an NFT. This is a big step for independent creators that want to bring their projects directly to market without compromising with larger distributors.
While independent creators, artists, and filmmakers can benefit greatly from distributing and promoting their work via NFTs, so too can big studios.
The key thing to remember is that any unique digital asset could be an NFT. This opens new doors for brands to profit off of digital collectibles and unique tokens that existing fan bases would want to engage with.
Think about Marvel, for instance. For decades, Marvel has sold physical merchandise, like action figures and clothing in order to increase revenue streams from their intellectual property. Now, Marvel can create a whole new set of digital merchandise in the form of NFTs. This could include anything from digital characters, to original copies of movie scripts. Additionally, not only do they profit off of the initial sale of said NFTs
But unlike physical merchandise, Marvel can continue to make royalties of each subsequent sale.
Hopefully you’re starting to see why everyone is eager to hop on the Web 3.0 train.
Is this really already happening or is it all theoretical?
Big companies see what is on the horizon and are already making big moves.
Production company Legendary Entertainment has dipped their toes into NFTs with a seven piece Godzilla vs. Kong NFT collection by digital artist BossLogic.
UTA now represents NFT Projects from Larva Labs, including CryptoPunks — 10,000 unique pixel art characters, ranging in value from six to nine figures each.
Tom Cruise’s Maverick: Top Gun opened into select theaters for audiences with a collector enamel helmet pin, collector print and a collector NFT ticket.
Fox plans to double down on its initial $100 million investment into its blockchain division — the first of its kind at any major TV studio. According to Axios, Scott Greenberg, the CEO of Fox’s Blockchain Creative Labs division, “sees NFTs and other digital assets as an opportunity to create more fan engagement not just across all of Fox’s properties, like Fox Sports, Fox Entertainment and Fox News, but third-party franchises too.”
Innovators are driving the prevalence of NFTs across the media and entertainment landscape. The opportunity to tap straight into new and existing communities through a virtual world filled with digital property, tickets, prizes, collectibles, and content is just around the corner.
But NFT is just the currency. The whole game is to build experiences along with engagement and a community that participates in this ecosystem.
This is the future of media and entertainment. That is why Liveplex is here. Our Web 3.0 ecosystem is plug and play to your specific needs and that of your audience.
If you think you have time, you are wrong. The space is moving quickly to a new realm. So should you.