Pudgy Penguins, once a non-fungible token (NFT) project during the 2021 cryptocurrency boom, is turning to real-world visibility with a high-profile ad placement in the Las Vegas Sphere during Christmas week.
Only a few cryptocurrency-related brands have secured advertising space on Sphere, a massive LED-covered venue known for its immersive exhibits and performances by artists like U2 and the Eagles. A bitcoin-focused activation took place in July, but other examples have been rare.
The Pudgy Penguins ad will run over several days starting Dec. 24 and will include multiple animated segments, according to a person familiar with the deal. The brand spent approximately $500,000 on the location, which is standard for a Sphere race.
“It’s kind of a demonstration that a crypto project can surpass and break out of cryptocurrencies, touching the hearts and minds of everyday consumers,” Vedant Mangaldas, head of strategy and brand at Pudgy Penguins, told CoinDesk. He said the deal was possible because the project has a “real business” behind it.
Launched in 2021 on Ethereum, Pudgy Penguins is best known for its collection of 8,888 NFTs of cartoon-style penguins, each with unique characteristics. Since then, under new leadership, the project has expanded into physical toys sold at major retailers and a browser-based social game called Pudgy World.
The most popular Pudgy Penguin was reportedly sold in August 2022 for 400 ETH, valued at around $650k at the time. Today, the NFT would be worth more than $1.2 million at the current ETH price of $3,086.
The project struggled to remain relevant during the last few years of the NFT bear market, not without success. Last December, he made new headlines when he said he planned to launch a token called PENGU on Solana. .
A few weeks later, the NFT set became the second most valued NFT in the world with the minimum (or minimum) price for any of the 8,888 comic penguins exceeding $100,000 and raising the value of the collections above its comic monkey predecessor, the Bored Apes Yacht Club.
PENGU, which trades on major exchanges such as Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD), is down about 80% over the past year and about 74% from its all-time high of $0.042 in July.
