Sony Block Solutions Labs has announced a partnership between its Layer-2 blockchain platform, Soneium, and IRC APP, the official application for Japan's largest idol and fashion festival, Idol Runway Collection (IRC). This collaboration aims to redefine global fan engagement by integrating AI-powered IPFi infrastructure to reward measurable on-chain contributions.
The IRC APP evaluates fan activities on platforms like X (formerly Twitter), converting positive engagement into an IRC Score that is automatically claimed to users' on-chain wallets without gas fees. This score determines membership ranks—Regular, Bronze, Silver, or Gold—each offering progressively enhanced real-world benefits for IRC 2026, scheduled for March 15, 2026, in Tokyo. Benefits include early ticket access, priority entry, and premium venue invitations.
The system also enables an on-chain Fan Vote, allowing fans to directly influence tangible aspects of the IRC 2026 event. The partnership is supported by the Record token ($REC) and builds on IRC's success, which attracted approximately 11,800 attendees and 107 idol groups in 2025. Soneium, launched on January 14, 2025, uses Ethereum's OP Stack for security, lower fees, and higher throughput, targeting scalable applications in entertainment and creative industries.
This initiative mirrors broader trends in Asia, such as Korea's tripleS group, which uses blockchain for fan co-creation and transparent revenue sharing, contrasting with failed experiments like Momentrica's NFT platform. Sony's approach focuses on participation architectures to avoid past pitfalls and expand into anime and fashion sectors.
