Starbucks announced the discontinuation of its NFT-based loyalty program, Odyssey Beta. The American coffee chain stated in its official blog that the initiative will be closed on March 31 as part of the preparation for the next steps in the program's development.
The company's NFTs, known as Stamps, will remain available on the Nifty Gateway platform, where they can be purchased. Meanwhile, the Odyssey marketplace will be moved to the Nifty platform, but users will be able to transfer Stamps and other NFTs to external wallets and trade them on various platforms.
Additionally, Starbucks will close the Odyssey server on Discord on March 19, hoping to preserve the community and provide its members with opportunities for future interaction. The company expressed gratitude for the opportunity to explore various methods of community engagement and loyalty and expressed a desire to apply the experience gained to a broader audience.
The closure of Starbucks' NFT program was not unexpected, considering that in April 2023, the company failed to sell the entire Starbucks First Store Collection at $100 per token.
Starbucks had previously ventured into cryptocurrencies, offering its users digital asset transactions in 2020. Blockchain initiatives in the company were promoted by former CEO Kevin Johnson, who saw them as an opportunity for customers to exchange values between brands and receive a more personalized experience.
