Crypto Man Caves
I meet with sports teams, networks, fans, and athletes daily. The athletes understand audiences and fans really well, most interact with people directly and daily on social media. However, some of the rest of the sports ecosystem don’t immediately grasp concepts that CryptoKitties, Candy Crush, Twitch, and Pokemon Go tell us about today’s audiences.
Digitization
I have a very good friend that collects sports figurines (I think he refers to them as collectables) and puts them in a man cave.
These very nice, expensive sports collectables are important to my friend — a corporate executive who deadlifts 500 lbs, listens to hard rock music, and never misses a Steelers game. Several years ago my friend said that he would always buy physical music. He liked to collect the albums, CDs, etc. Of course, he no longer buys physical music.
Sports is a game — some play and others watch
So many people I talk to in sports say, “Why would I play a video game if I can’t make any money?”
“Simple,” I say, “Ask your son why he plays Minecraft and your mother-in-law why she plays Candy Crush.”
These games teach us that, like sports, people like to play games — sports is a game. Further, the lesson in Twitch is similar, people like to watch other people play games. Candy Crush teaches us that 80% of sports fans that are not gamblers don’t engage in games to see if their team covers the spread.
Digital Items
Music collections can be digitized. What other things are we digitizing? The mobile gaming industry is worth over US$100 billion, the mobile advertising industry is worth over US$100B. Mobile gamers are buying sneakers and hats for the game avatar, unlocks to get to the next level or challenge, saving a streak or a game life, coins and points to gain new powers. This digital item economy is over 20x bigger than the top 10 NFL teams total yearly revenues combined.
CryptoKitties
Another friend, Duncan Stewart of Deloitte, recently noted that over 95% over the cryptocurrency market may be male. Its possible to track the sales of these virtual pets (yes, you can move past the pet rock stories, there is a new pet in town) online. As of January 21, 2018, over US$19 million worth of virtual kittens have been sold. The top price — a lot more than a Super Bowl ticket at — US$110,707.16.
CryptoCaves
The man cave has moved online. Digital and crypto-collectibles are replacing figurines. A man cave is a museum where all the dolls and jerseys are behind glass. Games and digital collectibles allow us to interact, build value, and engage with the digital world. Man caves are moving onto the blockchain.
