Is it the ultimate in consumer convenience or a fancy alternative to gambling? Non-fungible tokens are now accessible via a vending machine, with the first such contraption installed in New York.
The new payment device comes from the company Neon. The intention is to provide a new NFT and digital collecting platform, accessible to anyone with sufficient interest and credit. The process is based on the Solana blockchain.
The machine forgoes the current association between NFTs and cryptocurrency, by accepting credit and debit cards, chargeable in U.S. dollars. The reason for this was in recognition that only a tiny proportion of the population own a digital wallet and with accessibility the key the standard payment route was opted for.
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Upon payment, the machine dispenses a box. Inside the box is a unique code, which relates to the selected NFT (such as a digital image). The code is then inputted into the Neon platform as simply as redeeming a gift card, thereby requiring no specialized knowledge required.
The vending machine is operational 24 hours a day and its launch has been backed with $3 million in seeding, bridging the physical and the digital. The focus is on digital art, with a view to making original pieces of digital art easier to obtain.
In terms of costs, digital images of hand signs are currently retailing for $50. These are on the lower end of the NFT scale.
According to Jordan Birnholtz, CMO and co-founder of Neon: “Our goal is to support artists and creators by letting them sell digital art to everyone, and to help anyone who wants to become a collector. Giving people the choice to use vending machines and an easy online platform that decouples cryptocurrency from NFT participation means we can engage the widest possible audience. NFT buying and selling doesn’t need to be a mystery and you shouldn’t be required to hold Ethereum, write a smart contract, pay gas costs or bridge blockchains to participate.”
Currently NFTs are on an upward trajectory. The advantage that some investors see with NFTs, certainly over traditional intellectual property creation, is that they can own a piece of a wider brand, and – potentially – make money off it.
