Budweiser Launches 1,936 NFT Cans, Bud-Themed Marketplace Gets Bogged Down With Traffic

The popular American-style pale lager produced by Anheuser-Busch, Budweiser announced on November 29, that the firm planned to issue a series of 1,936 non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles. Following the Bud-themed NFT market launch, the web portal experiences some hiccups.

Budweiser Issues NFT Beer Can Collection — NFT Cans Give Access to the ‘Budverse’

At the end of August, the crypto community discussed the popular American beer brand Budweiser purchasing an NFT crafted by Tom Sachs called “Life of the Party.” Moreover, Budweiser also acquired the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domain called “beer.eth” on August 11, 2021. According to Opensea records, Budweiser spent $96,000 or 30 ether at the time of sale in order to acquire the ENS domain.

Budweiser also uses the domain name beer.eth on its Twitter handle and the company announced releasing a collection of 1,936 Bud-themed NFTs. “The wait is over,” the video accompanying Budweiser’s tweet said on Monday. “Own a piece of Budweiser history,” the video explains, while showing a few previews of the NFTs called “Budverse cans.” The company introduced the Budverse marketplace to the company’s fans at 1 p.m. (EST).

Budweiser NFT Web Portal Gets Bogged Down at Launch, Gold and Core Budweiser NFT Cans

While attempting to visit the Budweiser NFT web portal, the site seemed to be bogged down by lots of traffic, as the page gave multiple “504 Gateway Time-out” warnings after 1 p.m. After getting the site up and loaded, visitors must be 21 years or older to enter the web portal. Visitors are required to enter their age. That section of the portal gave another “error” when checking the legal drinking age. Finally, after 15 minutes of trying to enter the Budweiser NFT web portal with no luck, it suddenly opened for our newsdesk at 1:16 p.m. (EST).

“Introducing Budweiser’s first-ever NFT collection: Budverse Cans Heritage Edition. Composed of 1,936 unique digital cans, representing 1936, the year of the first Budweiser can,” the Bud-centric NFT website says. “Each NFT is one of a kind and generated using archived photos, ads, and designs from throughout Budweiser’s storied history. Each NFT will act as an entry key to the Budverse, unlocking exclusive benefits, rewards and surprises for all 21+ (or legal drinking age) NFT holders.”

The collection showcases 1,900 “Core NFTs,” which are generative art NFTs showcasing iconic Budweiser cans from throughout the beer company’s history. The Budweiser Core NFTs also unlock some kind of “exclusive access” and rewards from the Budverse.

The collection further has 36 super rare “Gold NFTs,” which feature the firm’s iconic heritage cans. The Budweiser website says the Gold Budweiser NFTs give VIP tickets to the “best experiences in Budverse and beyond.” Many of the Budweiser NFT cans sold out in a matter of minutes, and people will have to wait until the unique NFTs start getting listed on second-market platforms.

Budweiser is not the only brand trying to get its feet wet in the metaverse with NFTs. At the end of August, the popular beverage producer and brand Arizona Iced Tea introduced NFTs with the Bored Ape Yacht Club team. The fast-food giant McDonald’s recently unveiled the “McRib” non-fungible token collectible. Both Nike and Adidas have been stepping toward the metaverse and blockchain-backed NFTs in recent times as well.