As my book WTF are NFTS? indicated, the revolutionary aspect of smartcontracts is now showing obvious signs that this technology is being championed and making waves in marketing, fashion, and capital markets.
Although the news media reports that NFTs have fallen out of favor and projects have lost much of their value, I am more bullish than ever that NFTS will continue to be innovative and forge a path in many sectors of the economy.
Copyright has been thrown out the window and luxury brands are breaking into the crypto-art space with gusto. Let’s dive in!
This is a new acronym that has popped up recently and one you will probably see more often. CC0 stands for Creative Commons Zero, which actually means zero copyright. This week two huge projects have moved to a CC0 public license, Moonbirds and XCOPY.
With this CC0 move, anyone is allowed to use a jpeg image from Moonbirds or an XCOPY work and create whatever they want with it, without any licensing or copyright issues. People can make prints, t-shirts, movies or anything they can dream of. How is that possible? Haven’t we been touting how incredible it is to have ownership rights through NFTs, and you, as the owner, has control of that IP address? That’s right, we have! However, in one full swoop, XCOPY and the founders of Moonbirds have decided to unilaterally change the rules.
Many of the holders are not happy about it, but this change may benefit the holders in time. With the ability to create any derivative of the art, it allows for growth of a larger fan-base and community participation, it can bring much more attention to the project, and it will lower the entry point for enthusiasts to get involved. In this way, the original holder may likely be a long-term winner! When you think about it thoroughly, it is obvious that this is marketing genius. It is extremely difficult and expensive to build a brand and by giving freedom to the public to create what they like, the founders are outsourcing their advertising budget and letting the market determine its value.
My take is that CC0 is not for every project, but for some, it makes financial sense.
In other news this week, we saw the launch of CryptoPunk Necklaces by Tiffany & Co. Tiffany has partnered with crypto startup, Chain, to create 250 hand-crafted diamond encrusted punk pendants that come with an NFT of their pendant (as depicted below).
“For about $50,000 (30 Ethereum), CryptoPunk holders can get a handcrafted pendant modeled after their NFT (non-fungible token) from Tiffany & Co.…The pendant, which will feature “at least” 30 diamonds or gemstones, will hang on an 18K gold chain with five pave diamonds on the clasp.”-The Verge
This venture is even more impressive if you multiply out the price tag: Tiffany & Co. will gross $12.5M off of a customer list from another team’s work and success.
At first, I doubted that any holders would be very interested in purchasing one of these necklaces. Why would someone want to wear their CryptoPunk around their neck? It may be diamond encrusted, but it resembles a dime store trinket. However, I also recognize that people like to flex, and sporting one of these establishes that you are in an elite and exclusive group, like driving around in a Lamborghini, sporting a Tiffany CryptoPunk may be all the rage.
This enterprise highlights the fact that luxury brands recognize how engaging cryptoart can be and I believe it’s only a matter of time before we see this business model grow with more collaborations between popular crypto-brands and high-end fashion houses. Cozomo de’ Medici says it best when he muses what’s next…“Hermes belt buckle apes? Prada Moonbird sneakers?” My bet, Gucci Ape Slippers!
Leave a comment and let me know if you agree or disagree. Do you like the look of the CryptoPunk necklace and would you wear it? Share your thoughts!
If you haven’t picked up a copy of my book WTF are NFTS? now’s the time! If you already have, please write a review on Amazon. It really helps get the word out and I sincerely appreciate your support.
Enjoy the day and…
Stay Curious!
Meta is expanding NFT support on Instagram to 100 countries-TechCrunch
NFT Exchange Magic Eden Expands to Ethereum: The leading Solana-based non-fungible token platform is taking another swing at OpenSea and embracing Ethereum’s top-heavy NFT ecosystem–CoinDesk
Gucci Has Announced They Will Accept Apecoin Payments Through the BitPay Wallet App: All of Gucci’s directly controlled locations in the US now accept 10 different cryptocurrencies as payment-NFTNewsPro
The APENFT Foundation Announces the Second Open Call For Submissions To Its $100 Million Art Dream Fund: APENFT and TRON plan to launch The Sandbox, a metaverse where artists will be able to build their own studios and compete for prizes-NFTNewsPro
The Gap Between Crypto and the SEC Is Widening. Legal Experts Weigh In: Web3 entities and the regulatory agencies that oversee them are at a low point in their relationship.-NFTNow
