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SeatlabNFT Announces $1.2M Event Creator Fund
SeatlabNFT, which uses blockchain technology to issue event tickets as NFTs, announced a £1 million ($1.2 million) SeatlabNFT Event Creator Fund designed to help artists and event organizers with the cost of running live events.
The non-repayable grants are open to applications from events and festivals worldwide via seatlabnft.com. Successful applicants will receive their grants in installments (more on this below), and become a SeatlabNFT sponsored event and official ticketing client in the process.
Grants are paid out in $SEAT tokens which will be able to be exchanged for fiat.
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According to the press release announcing the SeatlabNFT Event Creator Fund, there is no minimum or maximum amount associated with the grant as different events have varied capital requirements.
The money is intended to cover the many upfront costs associated with running a live event, such as venue deposits, artist booking fees and marketing campaigns, so promoters can focus on doing what they do best, “putting on unforgettable shows,” according to SeatlabNFT.
Applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Applicants are asked to provide detailed information about their event, including any venue contracts and artist agreements. SeatlabNFT also looks at the applicant’s experience of running successful events, the social media following of relevant stakeholders, and anything else that will help them better understand the event’s viability. Lastly, applicants will need to outline the grant size they’re requesting and how they will allocate funds. “SeatlabNFT will internally assess applications and make a decision within a few weeks,” the press release outlines.
Successful applicants will receive their grants in installments, unlocking the next payment when they reach a significant milestone. Although each grant is assessed on a case-by-case basis, typical milestones are the sign-on bonus, the moment tickets go on sale, 50% of tickets sold, 100% of tickets sold, and the day of the event.
This Event Creator Fund is the next big step for SeatlabNFT, who have already developed a game-changing, NFT-powered event ticketing system that artists and event organizers can utilize to regain control of the secondary market, prevent counterfeiting, and bring fans and artists closer together through exclusive rewards and collectibles.
SeatlabNFT director Ryan Kenny commented, “We’re excited to announce the SeatlabNFT Event Creator Fund, which we hope will provide organizers around the world with the financial injection needed to allow them to try out and embrace our event ticketing technology at their events! We’re looking to work with a wide range of events, so we encourage everybody who will benefit to apply’
Pollstar, having covered blockchain ticketing extensively in the past, wanted to know what exactly separates an NFT ticket from a regular blockchain ticket. Kenny explained, “NFTs natively live on a blockchain, in our case a carbon neutral chain called NEAR, they’re not completely separate things. We provide the tools for NFTs to become programmable tickets. We can set things like price ceilings, transfers, secondary sale royalty spilts and we can also attach collectibles and digital merchandise to these tickets. Therefor adding more value to the end user, whilst still preventing ticket fraud and substantially limiting ticket touting.
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“For organizers, we open up unparalleled control of the secondary market and make it almost impossible for touts to operate at scale. We also allow them to capitalise on digital merchandise, assets and to utilise gamification via the wallet to improve the event experience and encourage a much closer relationship between fan and artists/organiser.
“Additionally we give organisers the ability to interact with their fans before, during or after events via their wallet mobile application and can provide a greater level or insight into user behaviour than traditional ticketing.”