Nike Ends Midnight Sneaker Releases; Announces 'Twitter RSVP' Plan

If you planned on standing on a line all night to get those Air Yeezy 2s, forget it kid.

Nike has officially decided to end their "midnight release" tradition after the riots and violence resulting from both the Air Jordan Concord 11 and Foamposite Galaxy releases. Instead, they've initiated a new 'Twitter RSVP' method that actually makes you "reserve" your sneakers, compared to risk of getting robbed coming out the store or not getting a pair at all.

According to The Smoking Section, here's how it works:

The Twitter RSVP Process:

On the RSVP date, our store will send a tweet at a random time to begin our Twitter RSVP process, including a product specific hashtag (#tag).

Once registration is open, you must Direct Message(“DM”) the store within 60 minutes. The DM must include:

—The product-specific #tag tweeted by the store
—The last 4 digits of your State/Passport/Military/School ID number
—Your shoe size (limit one).

Confirmations from the store will be sent via DM to those who have successfully secured their requested size. Shoes will be awarded on a “first respond, first serve” basis. Confirmed recipients must pick up their product (in person w/ identification) from the store on the day of launch. Unclaimed product will be announced on Twitter and will be re-released at the store’s discretion.

This new ruling only applies to official Nike stores, so other retailers—like Foot Locker and Champs—can still do midnight releases if they want. On one hand, it eliminates the lines. Then again, the online competition just gets bigger—especially with a reported 100 million+ users on Twitter. Sound off and give us your opinion.—Keenan Higgins