Heineken® Silver Breaks out of the Metaverse

From Virtually to Actually Here

AMSTERDAM, April 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Heineken® Silver, the world's first "virtual" beer, was launched as Heineken®'s ironic way of poking fun at brands releasing products in the metaverse that are actually best enjoyed in real life.

In a series of exclusive launch events across Europe, Heineken® Silver has now broken out of the metaverse and into the real world showing that nothing beats the extra refreshing taste of a beer – for real.

Playing on the blend between the physical and digital worlds, the Heineken® Silver events across Europe included elements taken from Heineken®'s launch in Decentraland and brought into the real world to be enjoyed by consumers. With these 'IRL' (in-real-life) events taking place in cities including Amsterdam, London, Milan and Madrid, consumers were able to experience some of the most bizarre creations from the metaverse before being able to enjoy their first extra-fresh taste of Heineken® Silver – for real.

Making the event even more exciting was the addition of For Real Tokens (FRTs), collectible art pieces created in partnership with prominent visual artist from Spain, J. Demsky. These FRTs are Heineken®'s sarcastic play on the NFT culture blending the physical and digital worlds to gift people with a limited-edition artwork, to remind them that some moments are best experienced in the real world.

Bram Westenbrink, Global Heineken® Brand Director at HEINEKEN, said: "We launched Heineken® Silver in the metaverse first as an ironic take on a product launch to highlight that we believe the best way to experience Heineken® is in the real world.  Today we are really playing with this virtual to real world, with 'phygital' events across Europe, celebrating the new addition to the Heineken® family by delivering the best of both worlds; engaging entertainment like in the metaverse but with 'in person' experiences and a beer you can actually drink!"

Consumers will be able to get their hands on the real Heineken® Silver throughout Europe from 7^thApril 2022. With a crisp flavour and a subtle finish, Heineken® Silver has a lighter drinking profile that's designed for modern taste preferences. Crafted using the same star-quality natural ingredients as Heineken® Original, it's a crystal-clear, all-round crowd pleaser that is extra fresh – for real.

Editorial information:

For more information, please contact: HNKNBrand@edelman.com 

About HEINEKEN:                     

HEINEKEN is the world's most international brewer. It is the leading developer and marketer of premium beer and cider brands. Led by the Heineken® brand, the Group has a portfolio of more than 300 international, regional, local and specialty beers and ciders. We are committed to innovation, long-term brand investment, disciplined sales execution and focused cost management. Through "Brewing a Better World", sustainability is embedded in the business.

HEINEKEN has a well-balanced geographic footprint with leadership positions in both developed and developing markets. We employ over 85,000 employees and operate breweries, malteries, cider plants and other production facilities in more than 70 countries. Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. shares trade on the Euronext in Amsterdam. Prices for the ordinary shares may be accessed on Bloomberg under the symbols HEIA NA and HEIO NA and on Reuters under HEIN.AS and HEIO.AS. HEINEKEN has two sponsored level 1 American Depositary Receipt (ADR) programmes: Heineken N.V. (OTCQX: HEINY) and Heineken Holding N.V. (OTCQX: HKHHY).

Most recent information is available on HEINEKEN's website: www.theHEINEKENcompany.com and follow us on Twitter via @HEINEKENCorp.

SOURCE Heineken