NFTs have been gaining in popularity over the past few years. Ever since CryptoPunks was minted in 2017 by John Watkinson & Matt Hall, many other NFT creators have jumped onto the bandwagon to create NFT projects. NFTs are evolving rapidly in terms of form and function and getting into mainstream. Form-wise, many NFTs are now starting to look more and more aesthetic as compared to the early days of simple “flat” designs that is characteristic of PFP NFTs (profile picture NFTs). Function-wise, many NFT projects are now focusing on “utility” which goes beyond a simple JPEG, GIF or PNG and includes other items as part of the NFT package. These items may be a real world (physical) item, or a charitable cause.
NFTs in and of themselves are the evolution of cryptocurrency tokens. Cryptocurrency has always been traded over blockchains, with smart contracts being issued as proofs of ownership of cryptocurrency tokens. In the early days, cryptocurrency tokens were built on “Level 1” of blockchains and as the name suggests, were “fungible” or exchangeable for the same value. If you had purchased 1 ETH, you could technically trade that 1 ETH into “fiat” (national currency) for the exact same value that you purchased it immediately after purchasing it (barring any huge swings in price).
On the Ethereum blockchain, cryptocurrencies were traded as ERC-20 tokens. The genesis of NFTs came about when a “Level 2” was built. NFTs refer to non-fungible tokens, which means they cannot be bought and resold at the same value at a crypto exchange. One could not purchase a Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT, for example, and go to a crypto exchange and expect to get back the same amount of money that the NFT was purchased at. One had to find someone else who was interested in that NFT in order to sell it. In effect, NFTs are digital goods that come with a proof of ownership in the form of a smart contract. On blockchains, NFTs are traded as ERC-721 tokens. Ethereum went a step further and developed ERC-1155 tokens which allowed NFT creators to upload their NFTs without paying “gas fees” (variable transactional fees based on the “mining” activity on the Ethereum blockchain). This process is called as “lazy minting” and gas fees would only be paid when a buyer expresses interest and mints them.
Also, a good point to note is that there is now talk about ERC-20 NFTs. Well, technically, ERC-20 tokens cannot be NFTs, because ERC-20s are fungible, and NFTs are, well, non-fungible. ERC-20 NFTs are used to refer to cryptocurrencies which were created in the name of popular NFTs, such as ApeCoin.
NFTs, cryptocurrencies and web3 in general can be seen to be a little bit exclusive and “off the beaten path”. Of course it is. One of the first crypto coins, BitCoin, was created in response to the 2008 financial crisis, and especially the “ills” associated with a centrally governed national currency. But the popularity of NFTs has gone beyond the web3 space. Many people who were hitherto not web3 enthusiasts have heard of NFTs, and are expressing interest in them. It is thus inevitable that NFTs are going to become more and more mainstream. Let’s look at some examples.
Digital artists can now remotely showcase their NFTs in the new “Web3 NYC Gallery” located in Manhattan, New York (specifically, 510 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036). Effectively, these artists can exhibit and sell their NFTs in a physical art gallery without even setting foot in the United States. This is going to increase the visibility and awareness of NFTs to a wider more mainstream population. Website: https://www.web3nycgallery.com/
Lacoste has officially launched its first NFT project called “Undw3”, a set of 11,212 collecitbles. This collection plays on the crocodile motif that is part of the brand’s heritage and brings the label to Web3. Lacoste was founded in 1933 in Troyes, France, way before the digital age. This NFT project signals how even traditional brands are now moving into the web3 space, bringing web3 and the mainstream closer together. As of 22 June 2022, this set of NFTs has been sold out, with more than 55,000 people participated in the Premint raffle.according to the website. Website: https://undw3.lacoste.com/
TAG HEUER® has released new models Connected Calibre E4 smartwatches aimed at NFT holders. NFT holders can now display the NFTs they own by connecting to their MetaMask for verification of ownership. This follows the earlier effort by Twitter to allow NFTs to be used a profile pictures, similarly verifiable through OpenSea. Twitter has been long known to be a popular social media platform for NFTs. With Tag Heuer offering a similar service, NFTs are going to be even more embedded in the real world. Website: https://www.tagheuer.com/ru/ru/smartwatches/collection-connected.html
Mastercard has announced that it is migrating its payment network to Web3 and NFT. Investing USD 2.9 billion, Mastercard will enable NFT trading with Immutable X, Candy Digital, The Sandbox, Mintable, Spring, Gift Gateway and Web3 infrastructure provider MoonPay. What this means for the mainstream market is that MasterCard cardholders will be able to buy NFTs without having to buy crypto or deal with crypto wallets. Rather, NFTs can be purchased using “fiat”. This is definitely going to increase the purchase of NFTs, as people interested in owning NFTs do not have to purchase cryptocurrency in order to buy NFTs. Mastercard’s decision comes after they conducted a survey of over 35,000 people in 40 countries and found that 45% of them have purchased NFTs or are considering doing so.
Children’s cable TV channel Nickelodeon plans to launch NFT in partnership with the Recur platform, based on the Polygon blockchain. The Polygon blockchain is integrated with the Ethereum blockchain, which means that these NFTs can be purchased from OpenSea as well. These NFTs will be based on the channel’s classic cartoons such as “The Oh Those Kids” and “Hey Arnold!” Website: https://info.nickelodeon.xyz/
PlanetSLY – Rocky and Rambo star Sylvester Stallone has decided to make his new NFT collection available to anyone with a credit card. This example also shows how NFTs can be purchased with fiat, without the need to purchase cryptocurrency beforehand. Website: https://planetsly.com/
MetaBrew Society is planning to open a brewery in Munich that is based on the concept of a DAO (decentralised autonomous organisation). A DAO is an organisation that is governed using the tools of web3. Voting rights, responsibilities and other aspects of organisational obligations, which traditionally have been governed by the Contract for Service or Contract of Service, will be governed immutably by a Smart Contract. Should there be any need to change the details of the contract, the token will be “burned” and replaced with a new one. In the case of MetaBrew Society, it plans to issue NFTs that give owners a say in how the actual brewery is run. The NFT holder will be entitled to 100 free beers per year, and the sale of the NFTs will help fund the purchase and scale of the brewery. Website: https://www.metabrewsociety.com/
Pinktada is using NFT technology for travel accommodations. It converts each night of room reservations into a token (Room-Night Token, or RNT) that can be easily swapped or sold based on the live market price up to 2 days before check in, giving travellers flexibility in their bookings. These RNTs can be swapped for a different Pinktada booking or sold back for PinkCash up to 2 days before check in. Guests can swap their bookings for any available room on Pinktada, including another hotel or destination. They will receive swap credit based on the current market value. Website: https://www.pinktada.com/legendary
These are only some of the recent efforts in bringing NFTs more into the mainstream. It is evident that there is a lot of excitement and potential around NFTs. Numerous brands are starting to experiment with the technology, and there are many opportunities for innovative use cases. As the industry continues to develop, it will be interesting to see how NFTs are used to create more engaging and valuable experiences for users.
