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Commercial Use Policy
The POAP Curation Body applies different standards to precious digital collectibles minted for personal use and those minted for commercial use. POAP Inc subsidizes all POAPs minted for personal use. At the discretion of the POAP Curation Body, POAPs minted for commercial use may be charged a fee.
While smaller and IRL drops categorized as commercial use will continue to be subsidized, larger and/or online commercial drops may require payment. Previous POAP issuers in good standing will be grandfathered in at preferential pricing.
The distinction between a personal and commercial POAP can be attributed to its purpose and intended use. A POAP that enriches the collector’s life and aligns with personal/historical interests is typically associated with personal use. On the other hand, a POAP that promotes brand awareness or primarily serves the issuer’s interests is typically associated with commercial use.
The following guidelines can help determine whether your drop falls under personal or commercial use:
Metric | Personal Use | Commercial Use |
|---|---|---|
Event Size | <200 attendees | >200 attendees |
| Small/medium, often private event | Very large, often public, event |
Event Budget | $0 or minimal | Some budget allocated for event orchestration |
Issuer Demographic | Individual or community | Small business, corporation, or network |
| Often a member of a small, interconnected group | Often a formal organization with governance |
| More likely to be first time or infrequent | Often frequent/recurring, sometimes working with BD or an agency |
Collector Demographic | Collectors often know each other and/or the issuer directly | Collectors are often fans, employees, or customers of the issuer |
| Often an emotional connection between issuer and collector | Often a paid relationship dynamic between issuer and collector |
Drop Qualities | Often a “surprise to collector” -- they are not anticipating a collectible | Marketing and/or communications by issuer to collector base about planned drop |
| Often celebrating personal/team achievements, milestones, or experiences | Often entertainment focused, for a corporate/sponsored event, delivered in a larger event context (i.e. booth at a conference), or for a formal launch by a financially backed team |
| Primarily about commemoration | Actively trying to drive collector engagement or use POAP as an acquisition channel (for completing tasks/surveys, to unlock perks, etc.) |
Drop Examples | Birthdays, weddings, anniversaries | Concerts, shows, performances |
| Friends/family outings | Corporate gatherings/initiatives |
| Small project milestones | Large product launches |
| Vacation/travel/holidays | Business and marketing campaigns |
| "You Met Me" POAPs | Conference booths and activations |
As a general guide, campaigns requiring large quantities of POAPs (especially in an automated fashion) will usually be considered commercial usage. The inability to verify collectors as unique human beings, or the expectation of benefit to the collector outside of a shared memory, may also cause a drop to be classified as commercial usage.
Drops containing proprietary brands and trademarks, those executed by for-profit organizations, or those created in support of commercial activity (including lead generation, awareness campaigns, community engagement, and developing future prospective distribution channels) may also fall under commercial usage guidelines.
Last modified 9d ago