You’ll be able to buy NBA tickets with bitcoin next season

Serial entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tickled the crypto community at a time when many could use a laugh: on Monday night, Cuban revealed that Mavericks fans will be able to buy their tickets with bitcoin starting next season, October of this year.

It’s hard to say how premeditated this decision is when word is coming via Cuban’s Twitter account. A pseudonymous crypto-trader persona named Batman Cash asked the A-list reality TV and business star,  “Mark, when will I be able to purchase Mavs tickets with bitcoin?” Cuban’s response was quickly to the point: “Next season.”

He clarified things in a later comment to CoinDesk: “We will be adding a crypto payment ability for next season. We will accept BTC, ETH, possibly some other currencies. [That’s] to be determined.”

The @Bitcoin Twitter account was so pleased with the development that it tipped the billionaire $20.

I've transferred your tip of 0.00988738 BCH ($20 USD) to mcuban! https://t.co/8ts5PQVahk

— tippr (@tipprbot) January 16, 2018

Part of Cuban’s fame stems from his having a lot of money, so it’s comes as no surprise that he has previously aired his bitcoin views for the public record. He acknowledges its ability to generate real value when it climbs, but is generally skeptical of it. He told CNBC in October that when you invest in bitcoin, “you’ve got to pretend you’ve already lost your money.” He cautioned against investing more than 10% in this volatile sphere.

Exorbitant transaction fees for one $10 ticket may be a non-starter for most, but such blockchain verified purchases might make a lot of sense for season tickets or other exclusive Mavericks offerings. The most expensive single ticket to a Mavs game these days is about $1,500, or 0.12855 BTC at today’s price.

It’s hard to determine if Cuban’s organization is implementing cryptocurrency technology because he sees it as viable a payments solution, or because it’s extremely good PR for a business to “take bitcoin” these days. In any event, we know Batman Cash will be pleased to buy his tickets in a new way.