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The legendary toymaker teams up with the world’s leading blockchain, WAX, offering a modern spin on the classic collectibles with a physically redeemable, digital Hot Wheels collection
El Segundo, CA, June 28, 2022 – Mattel, Inc., the leading global children’s entertainment company, and WAX, the carbon-neutral, delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS) blockchain that hosts more than 30,000 dapps and 12 million user accounts, today reveal an all-new Hot Wheels NFT Garage  Series 3. The latest series from the world’s leading vehicle franchise will represent fan favorites from Mattel’s immensely popular Hot Wheels Unleashed video game.
For over 50 years, Hot Wheels has brought joy to collectors around the globe, with more than 8 billion die-casts sold to fans, along with a growing number of life-sized designs that car fans of all ages adore.
Now, fans of Hot Wheels Unleashed can claim ownership of their cars in both Web3 and real-life, thanks to WAX’s proprietary vIRL® (virtual in real life) technology — a type of NFT created by WAX in 2018 to represent both physical goods and services in the real world.
In the series 1 NFT release, 5,400 limited edition, physical diecast models were made available for redemption. This technology enables users to separate ownership from possession, helping creators and collectors save on shipping, emissions, and more by removing the carbon footprint incurred from trading physical collectibles in real life.
The Hot Wheels NFT Garage series 3 offers ten licensed vehicle models across four different Mini-Collections. The NFTs are available in five rarities — Base, Rare, Premium, NFTH (Treasure Hunt), and Showroom. Users will get the chance to win a Premium or NFTH with each pack, giving them the option to redeem this vIRL® for a physical limited-edition die-cast collectible to add to their physical collections.
Packs of seven collectible NFTs will be priced at $25USD. Fans can purchase up to four packs per credit card transaction. Each of these mini-collections contains between seven and eight different models, with 11 of those models featuring multiple rarities; fans may even find some never-before-seen die-casts to add to their collections.
This latest drive into Web3 comes as part of an ongoing strategy from Mattel to capture both the emerging metaverse and the physical collectibles markets.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering up with WAX on the third iteration of the Hot Wheels NFT Garage. Providing collectors an option for physical redemption unlocks the best of both worlds and puts a modern and convenient spin on toy collecting, said Ted Wu, Global Head of Vehicles Design at Mattel. “Hot Wheels has already shown how popular it is with adults and children alike, but now we have a chance to conquer the Web3 arena, and WAX is making that possible.”
WAX’s partnership with Mattel comes amid a surge of brands and companies looking to capitalize upon and tokenize their IP in Web3.
WAX has had tremendous success onboarding major brands into Web3. In December, WAX partnered with Sony Pictures and AMC Theatres to giveaway official Spider-man: No Way Home NFTs. Many other global brands have come to the WAX blockchain, including Street Fighter, NASCAR and Atari. At the start of 2022, WAX performed the largest NFT drop in history — one to each of the first 10 million WAX accounts registered. William Quigley, CEO and co-founder at WAX, said: “It’s an honor to be working with Mattel and Hot Wheels to bring their legacy reputation into the Web3 space once again. With our vIRL technology, fans of Hot Wheels can find new ways to collect and enjoy these cars while still having access to the traditional die-cast models they fell in love with in the first place.”
Hot Wheels NFT Garage Series 3 packs go on sale July 7. 2022 , at 10AM PST/ 1PM EST.
About Hot Wheels
As a 54-year-old brand more relevant today than ever before, Hot Wheels is the world’s leading vehicle franchise which represents and unites all segments of car culture. For decades Hot Wheels has proven its influence in automotive and pop culture with legendary design and epic performance. Through unparalleled collaborations with global leaders in streetwear, fashion, luxury, entertainment, action sports and motorsports, Hot Wheels is the #1 selling toy in the world with over 8 billion vehicles sold. The brand engages fans of every generation through immersive live events, global competitions, theme park attractions, world-class digital gaming, consumer products and film and television content.
About Mattel, Inc.
Mattel is a leading global children’s entertainment company that specializes in design and production of quality toys and consumer products. We create innovative products and experiences that inspire, entertain, and develop children through play. We engage consumers through our portfolio of iconic franchises, including Barbie®, Hot Wheels®, American Girl®, Fisher-Price®, Thomas & Friends® and Mega®, as well as other popular brands that we own or license in partnership with global entertainment companies. Our offerings include film and television content, gaming, music, and live events. We operate in 40 locations and sell products in more than 150 countries in collaboration with the world’s leading retail and technology companies. Since its founding in 1945, Mattel is proud to be a trusted partner in exploring the wonder of childhood and empowering kids to reach their full potential. Visit us online at www.mattel.com. About WAX – The King of NFTs
The Worldwide Asset eXchange (WAX), aka the King of NFTs, is the world’s #1 blockchain, as measured by number of users and transactions, according to Dappradar.com. WAX’s mission is to bring NFTs to the mass market in the safest, most secure, environmentally friendly, and easy-to-use marketplace in the world. WAX is also the leading entertainment NFT network — in 2018, WAX introduced vIRLs®, giving consumer product companies the ability to directly link NFTs to physical consumer products. Co-founded in 2017 by William E. Quigley and Jonathan Yantis, WAX has facilitated the trade of more than 100 million digital collectables including Mattel, Hasbro, Major League Baseball (via Topps MLB collectables), Funko Digital POP!, Capcom’s “Street Fighter,” World Series of Poker and world-renowned entertainers Deadmau5 and Weezer. WAX is also the leading play-to-earn games and entertainment NFT network in the metaverse and is home to many of the leading blockchain games including Alien Worlds, Splinterlands, Farmers World and Farming Tales. For more information, please visit https://wax.io and follow along on Twitter and Discord.
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