Electronic payment service BitPay this week launched a campaign aimed at making Bitcoin transactions more appealing to business owners — the first time Bitcoin has been featured in a TV spot.

Conceived by Felton Interactive Group, the two new ads promote Bitcoin and BitPay as a secure alternative to traditional credit-card transactions.

Bitcoin is a digital currency based on open-source software that allows efficient and anonymous transactions. Launched in 2009, the cryptocurrency now has established itself as a viable way to send and receive payments.

It’s also a hot issue as companies like Microsoft and Dell have quietly started accepting it while news headlines have associated it with illicit drug dealing and other marginal businesses. As a result, many consumers remain tentative about using it.

Enter BitPay, a payment service that seeks to leverage Bitcoin for easier financial transaction both on and offline. BitPay simplifies sending and receiving the virtual currency easier for consumers and businesses.

This year BitPay sponsored a college football game in Florida with North Carolina State University and University of Central Florida. Both spots and the game aired last weekend on ESPN.

Besides a brief mention of Bitcoin during a TV commercial for Overstock.com, these two commercials conceived by Atlanta's Felton Interactive Group (FIG) are the first Bitcoin-business focused TV spots.

Both spots focus on business owners who may want to increase their revenue by not paying credit-card transaction fees, which BitPay mitigates using Bitcoin.

Based on the spots' positive reception on social media, FIG founder Ryan Felton told Campaign, the ads may run again later in January.

"Credit Card Mobster"

"The Professionals"

Campaign credits

Client: BitPay

Agency: Felton Interactive Group

"Credit Card Mobster"

Producer: Ryan Felton

Director: Chance White

Writer: Ryan Felton

Editor: Chance White