Published on: 08/08/2022
Sony gauges player interest in NFTs at EVO 2022
Japanese electronics and gaming giant Sony surveyed players at EVO 2022, asking them what NFTs they would be interested in purchasing.
On August 5, Twitter user @snorlaxownz shared a screenshot of a survey from PlayStation at EVO. The survey asked the player: “Which of the following NFTs/Digital Collectibles would you most be interested in purchasing?” with the possible answers being:
– Evo-branded
– Favorite music artists
– Favorite Esports players/teams
– Playstation Items
– Favorite Game Characters
Notably, there was no option to declare that the player had no interest in NFTs.
Hey @wario64 a special PlayStation quest at EVO is asking players about what gaming NFTs they want to see from PlayStation. pic.twitter.com/Vwd5Q3cHn1
— Snorlax Ownz (@snorlaxownz) August 5, 2022
IGN confirmed the existence of the survey at EVO. As Sony owns both PlayStation and EVO, it is possible that it is using the event to gauge interest in NFTs among their community.
Previously, Sony launched their PlayStation Stars loyalty program, which gives players the opportunity to earn digital collectibles. Sony clarified that these digital collectibles did not use any blockchain technology and therefore were not NFTs.
Players on Twitter speculated that the survey might signify that Sony is looking to integrate NFTs into the PlayStation Stars loyalty program due to its wording. However, Daniel Ahmad, an analyst at Niko Partners, clarified that the recent survey is not related to the digital collectibles from the PlayStation Stars loyalty program. He replied to a tweet that is now deleted, writing:
“This isn’t related to PlayStation Stars in this case
digital collectables is just a term that is used interchangeably with NFTs”
Though @snorlaxownz’s tweet was the subject of much discussion and speculation, Sony has yet to release an official statement regarding the survey or, indeed, any plans to integrate blockchain technology into its PlayStation and the Stars loyalty program.
About Sony and NFTs
Sony has displayed much interest in NFTs and blockchain technology, partnering with and investing large amounts into other companies. It recently launched a partnership with NFT Tech through Hawk-Eye Innovations to integrate NFTs into fantasy sports. Sony also invested $1 billion into Epic Games alongside KIRKBI to fund Epic Games’ metaverse vision back in April.
The company partnered with the TRON blockchain to enable in-game payments, but nothing has been announced since 2020. This recent survey could hint at Sony’s next moves in the blockchain technology sphere, especially since one of the survey’s answers listed “Favorite music artists.”
Sony Music Entertainment participated in a funding round for MakersPlace, which raised a total of $30 million. Multiple other companies and music artists, such as Eminem and 3Lay, also participated in the fundraising for the Web3 startup. However, despite investing in numerous blockchain-related projects, the company has yet to announce any NFTs of its own.
PlayStation’s large user base and reputation could put Sony in a position to introduce NFTs to the mainstream gaming audience. EVO is also well known in the fighting game community for being the most prestigious tournament that hosts a multitude of games. Other companies have started platforms to mint NFTs based on tournament moments and community-made content, a possible direction for Sony to take NFTs into, depending on the answers of the survey.
