‘India has Appetite for Immersive Experience’: Cadbury Parent Bets on Web3

Mondelez International, the parent of the Cadbury confectionery company, recently launched an NFT-centric initiative in India, despite prevailing regulatory uncertainties. India has an appetite for immersive experience, Anil Viswanathan, Vice President – Marketing, Mondelez India told Gadgets 360. In association with blockchain platform, GuardianLink, the Cadbury Gems brand launched the ‘Junior NFT’ campaign. Under this programme, Cadbury Gems is converting artwork made by kids into non-fungible tokens (NFTs) with the intention to donate the proceeds from their sales to rehabilitate underprivileged children.

“Lately, in India, there has been a lot of investment towards marketing technology innovations, and this indicates the country’s appetite for rich immersive experiences. Our aim is to be where our consumers are present and for that it only makes sense to be the early [Web3] adopters,” said Viswanathan.

In order to create a riveting experience for the early Web3 adopters from India, a special microsite has been created. Parents who wish to upload their child’s artwork for this NFT campaign must register on this site.

Through these entries, the confectionery company will make a one-of-its-kind online gallery of digital collectibles. Potential buyers will be given an opportunity to purchase these unique assets through fiat currency. These NFT pieces can also be resold repeatedly.

“Digital collectibles and blockchain technology are slowly gathering pace in India. With this foray in the digital asset’s world, we aim to celebrate the colourful imagination of kids by converting them into NFTs. Additionally, we have associated with ‘Save The Children’ wherein proceeds from the NFT sales will be used towards education of underprivileged children. This is the brand’s first NFT with a cause,” Viswanathan added.

Presently, the status of NFTs is unclear in-terms of its counting under the ‘Virtual Digital Assets (VDA) classification in India. By the end of this year however, the finance ministry may provide more clarity on the same.

The backing by popular brands like Cadbury could be game-changing for the NFT industry in a market as diverse and large as India’s.

Initiatives like these open roads to the NFT arena for common Indians, who run the country’s tech engagements and economy.

Earlier this year, Indian blockchain e-sports Firm ‘STAN’ entered into a strategic NFT partnership with three Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) pro teams to generate fan-engagements for its business, as well as for the NFT industry.

At this time, when the overall crypto market is struggling to overcome market volatility, the NFT industry is also going through a bit of a setback.

Data from top NFT trading marketplaces such as OpenSea has recently revealed that NFT trading volumes have fallen off a cliff in recent months, now at their lowest levels since July 2021.

According to crypto analytics community Dune data, OpenSea’s trading volume hit a peak of around $5.8 billion (roughly Rs. 46,408 crore) in January. However, trading on the platform has steadily declined throughout the first two quarters of the year, sliding to $3.1 billion (roughly Rs. 24,805 crore) in May.

A separate analysis by Be[In]Crypto also reveals that Solana’s NFT volumes have also seen a dip in June with sales volume figures of $91.52 million (roughly Rs. 732 crore) in June, down by 64 percent from $261.07 million (roughly Rs. 2,089 crore) in May 2022.