Category: NFTs

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Industries Korea NFTs Theta Theta Network

New Samsung Galaxy Smart Phones to Come with Theta-Based NFTs 

To celebrate the launch of new flagship models Galaxy S22 smartphone and S8 tablet, tech giant Samsung will be dropping collectible non-fungible tokens (NFTs) through ThetaDrop to South Korean customers who pre-order the new devices.

Samsung has once again included NFTs in one of its new offerings. After the pre-order period, customers who pre-order and pre-book the new Galaxy S22 smartphone or S8 tablet will need to register on ThetaDrop – the official Theta NFT marketplace – to collect their commemorative NFTs via their phones.

Samsung announcement (Korean). Source: Samsung

Pre-orders opened on February 9, and the devices are planned to launch officially on February 25.

According to a tweet from Mitch Liu, co-founder and CEO of Theta Network, customers who hold the commemorative NFT will be provided with “ongoing membership benefits and privileges”.

Our NFT collaboration with Samsung Electronics truly exemplifies global adoption of Theta’s blockchain technology and marks an important milestone in the growth of our core blockchain purpose built for the video, media and entertainment industry.

 Mitch Liu, co-founder and CEO, Theta Labs

Samsung’s Long-Standing Relationship with Theta

Samsung has worked with the Theta network on previous occasions but has now decided to use the blockchain for its specialised capabilities in video, media and entertainment to mint and issue the NFTs:

Samsung’s long-standing relationship with Theta began in 2019 when its venture capital arm invested in Theta Labs as part of its commitment to new technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and fintech. Samsung also collaborated with Theta when developing its new smart TVs that could act as a media hub and a node to expand the Theta network.

TVs can become relay nodes that are effectively on the edge of the network, and onboarding hundreds of thousands to millions of these devices could significantly bolster Theta’s network capacity.

Theta Network

Samsung has made quite a strong push into the crypto sector and has even opened a flagship store in Decentraland. The Korean company has on multiple occasions added some kind of blockchain functionality to its products, which will certainly support mainstream adoption in the long run.

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Crime Crypto News NFTs

UK Authorities Make First NFT Seizure, Worth $1.9 Million

In what is claimed to be the first haul of its kind in the UK, tax authorities have seized three NFTs valued at US$1.9 million as part of an investigation into an elaborate tax evasion scheme.

On February 14, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) arrested three people alleged to have conducted the fraud, which involved the use of false identities and a vast network of 250 fake ‘shell’ companies. In addition to the NFTs, other digital assets valued at approximately A$9,500 were also seized.

A Questionable Milestone? 

Many in the crypto community saw the seizure as something of a milestone and an official acknowledgment that NFTs can be genuinely valuable assets, similar to real estate or motor vehicles – even as they joked about it: 

One user joked about NFT asset seizures. Source: @3thirty3tv via Twitter

Seizure Signals Value of NFTs

It’s important to note that the NFTs were not actually used to commit the fraud, but seized as assets. It’s common practice for authorities to impound assets in tax-evasion cases to cover the cost of court proceedings and lost tax. What makes this case exceptional is that authorities have seized NFTs as assets for the first time.

This may be the first NFT seizure during a criminal investigation in the UK, but it’s not the first time crypto has been seized: last year London’s Metropolitan Police impounded US$160 million in cryptocurrency as part of a money-laundering investigation.

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Crime Crypto News NFTs

Tweet NFT Marketplace ‘Cent’ Halts Sales Citing ‘Rampant Plagiarism’

NFT marketplace “Cent” has had to temporarily halt most transactions on its platform to address “rampant” sales of fake and plagiarised NFTs.

While the marketplace has had to pause NFT sales, one part of the platform that sells NFTs of tweets, called “Valuables”, remains active.

People Selling Content They Didn’t Own

Cent, most famous for helping Jack Dorsey auction an NFT of his first tweet for US$2.9 million last year, has paused most transactions because it claims people were selling tokens of content that did not belong to them. Cameron Hejazi, CEO and founder of the company, said Cent called the halt on February 6.

Sales of NFTs generated US$25 billion in 2021, so it is expected that reports of scams, counterfeits and “wash trading” have become commonplace. Some Twitter users grabbed the opportunity to mock the situation:

According to Hejazi, “There’s a spectrum of activity that is happening that basically shouldn’t be happening – like, legally.” The CEO also highlighted three main problems active in the marketplace:

  • people selling unauthorised copies of other NFTs;
  • people making NFTs of content that does not belong to them; and
  • people selling sets of NFTs that resemble a security.

Hejazi added that these issues were “rampant”, with users “minting and minting and minting counterfeit digital assets”.

It kept happening. We would ban offending accounts but it was like we’re playing a game of whack-a-mole … Every time we would ban one, another one would come up, or three more would come up.

Cameron Hejazi, CEO and co-founder, Cent

Issues Come with the Territory

Just as NFTs have exploded in popularity and sales, so issues are sure to arise. In November last year, users were left puzzled when the front-end of Tezos-based NFT marketplace Hic et Nunc disappeared. More recently, OpenSea also experienced some issues when an update left some creators unable to mint new NFTs.

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Crypto Art Crypto News NFTs

CryptoPunk Sells for $23 Million, Doubles Previous Record

A CryptoPunk NFT has sold for 8,000 ETH (US$23.7 million), doubling the previous CryptoPunks record of US$11.8 million, set last June.

As announced via Twitter, Deepak Thapliyal, CEO of cloud blockchain infrastructure firm Chain, purchased CryptoPunk #5822 directly from CryptoPunks developer Larva Labs’ own online marketplace:

Thapliyal also tweeted that he leveraged DeFi protocol Compound Finance to pay for his CryptoPunk, telling Compound founder Robert Leshner: “Thanks to Compound I am able to still [hold] ETH while buying this. Basically long’d ETH to punk-in.”

Accusations of Money Laundering Erupt on Twitter

Within 24 hours of the sale, accusations erupted on Twitter of a money-laundering exercise, suggesting both buyer and seller were interchangeable:

NFT Record Price Rankings

CryptoPunk #5822 fetched the fourth-highest price ever for a single NFT. Beeple’s “Everydays: The First 5,000 Days” topped the tree at US$69.3 million last March, followed by last week’s sale of artist Pak’s “Clock” NFT to AssangeDAO, as reported by Crypto News Australia. Coming in third is Beeple’s “Human One”, which changed hands for US$29 million in November.

These rankings may well change after Sotheby’s single-lot sale of 104 CryptoPunks NFTs scheduled for live auction on February 23 in New York City.

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Bitcoin Crypto News Ethereum NFTs Polygon

Uber and WWF Show That ‘Environmental Concerns’ Hamper Crypto Adoption

Recent statements by the ride-sharing and delivery app Uber and wildlife conservation organisation World Wildlife Fund (WWF) have further highlighted the environmental hurdles crypto faces to achieve widespread mainstream adoption.

Speaking to Bloomberg last week, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was clear the company would  accept Bitcoin and other cryptos as payment at some stage, but that now was not the time:

Is Uber going to accept crypto in the future? Absolutely, at some point.

Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO

Khosrowshahi said that as it currently stands, Bitcoin is too expensive to use and too energy-intensive to justify Uber adopting it for payments. “As the exchange mechanism becomes less expensive, becomes more environmentally friendly, I think you will see us lean into crypto a little bit more,” he explained.

WWF NFTs Stymied by Backlash

WWF has also shown it’s enthusiastic about using crypto, but is being held back by environmental concerns. 

WWF recently started selling NFTs minted on the proof-of-stake Polygon network. The organisation claimed to have chosen to use the Polygon network due to its low carbon emissions compared to proof-of-work blockchains such as Ethereum, tweeting that each of its NFTs would generate the same carbon emissions as a glass of tap water. Sounds great so far. 

However, WWF has since stopped sales of its NFTs due to widespread backlash after it was pointed out by Alex de Vries of Digiconomist that because Polygon relies on several Ethereum-based smart contracts to function, its actual energy use is significantly higher than WWF initially stated – roughly 2,100 times higher.

Crypto’s Low Energy Future 

Is it all bad news as far as crypto and the environment go? When heavyweight crypto influencers like Elon Musk and Michael Saylor can’t agree on this question, you could be forgiven for thinking there’s genuine cause for concern. 

However, given statements such as those from Uber and the work being done by both Bitcoin and Ethereum to bring about a lower energy future – not to mention the existence of extremely efficient, carbon-negative alternative layer 1s such as Hedera Hashgraph and Algorand – it looks like the industry as a whole may well overcome the issue of energy use.

Categories
Fashion Metaverse NFTs The Sandbox Tokens

Gucci Moves into Sandbox Metaverse to ‘Host Immersive Experiences’

Gucci has announced plans to expand into The Sandbox metaverse. The luxury brand has bought an undisclosed quantity of lands within the virtual world in a project labelled Gucci Vault, and is seeking to appeal to Generation Z with the move.

Step Inside the Gucci Vault

The announcement accompanies a February 10 Twitter post introducing the Gucci Vault, which Gucci describes as an experimental space and is the brainchild of the company’s creative director, Alessandro Michele. Fans have already responded positively to Gucci’s corporate metaverse involvement:

In a blatant pitch to Gen Z, The Sandbox has stated that Gucci’s new endeavour is “inspired by childhood memories” and hopes to stimulate the conversation surrounding the metaverse and the designer fashion industry’s future. The company’s plans to enter the metaverse follow its mid-2021 release of a non-fungible token (NFT) collection.

The Gucci Vault Instagram account is up and running and while its posts remain cryptic, it is said that the project will also be a means for Gucci to sell vintage pieces alongside those from other notable designers. If you’d like to learn more about the Gucci Vault, the official Discord channel is now live.

Sandbox Moves from Strength to Strength

Gucci is not The Sandbox’s first partnership. The Ethereum-based game announced a collaboration last month with Warner Bros to launch the first music-themed metaverse. Purchasing lands within the game will allow the company to develop a musical theme park and concert venue.

https://www.sandbox.game/en/about/land/
The Sandbox lands description. Source: The Sandbox

The Sandbox token (SAND) skyrocketed at the end of 2021 as Facebook’s announcement of its rebranding to Meta had a butterfly effect on the industry. While the price of SAND is currently sitting at around A$6.25, further brand involvement could see it continue to rise.

By Lauren Claxton, Crypto News Guest Author

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Crypto News Ethereum NFTs Social media

‘OnlyFans’ Set to Adopt ETH-Based NFT Profile Pics

Following the lead of Twitter, Reddit and YouTube, racy online subscription service OnlyFans has announced that its users can now use verified Ethereum non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in their profile images.

Creators who choose to do so will receive an Ethereum symbol to show they own the asset. When users click on an NFT profile picture, they will see more information about the digital asset from OpenSea:

The idea of digital ownership is important to OnlyFans, a Web2 company whose business model has at times put it at odds with the traditional financial system.

Our mission is to empower creators to own their full potential. This feature is the first step in exploring the role that NFTs can play on our platform.

OnlyFans CEO Amrapali Gan

Launching in 2016, OnlyFans’ initial appeal was to amateur porn stars looking to take their “act” direct to audiences and cut out (at least some of) the middlemen. Similar to Patreon, OnlyFans takes a cut of the action in exchange for use of the platform.

New CEO Soft-Pedals OnlyFans Content

But the site has worked to temper its X-rated image, gradually replacing porn content with live music sessions, cosplay tutorials and fashion tips. Former chief marketing and communications officer (now CEO) Amrapali Gan took over the platform in December and says he has since shifted its emphasis to “non-nude” content.

Not that OnlyFans has dispensed with suggestive photos and videos entirely – that would serve to alienate much of its (hard) core audience.

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Crypto News Metaverse NFTs Social media

YouTube Confirms Move into Web3, Says It Has ‘Incredible Potential’

YouTube has confirmed it’s stepping into Web3, flagging its “incredible potential” for content creators through the use of blockchain technology and NFTs (non-fungible tokens).

In a February 10 blog post, YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan, shared some of the company’s upcoming plans for products and services in 2022, including Web3 technology.

Mohan said that YouTube was working on strategies to integrate some of these technologies. Some of Mohan’s suggestions regarding blockchain and NFTs include giving users the ability to own unique videos, photos, art and more from their favourite content creators. This also allows creators to better engage with their audience and access new ways of making money.

A Careful Approach to Web3

The approach, according to Mohan, is being taken in a “responsible manner”, as many companies have faced harsh backlash due to the environmental impact of using blockchain-based technologies such as Ethereum and its Proof of Work (PoW) consensus, which consumes an enormous amount of processing power.

There’s a lot to consider in making sure we approach these new technologies responsibly, but we think there’s incredible potential as well.

Neal Mohan, chief product officer, YouTube

The other aspect is that the NFT sphere is full of scammers and other malicious actors, and YouTube has been vulnerable to hacking attacks before. Two weeks ago, Crypto News Australia reported how more than 30 crypto YouTube Channels had been hacked in a coordinated attack.

Will There Be NFTs on YouTube Anytime Soon?

While Mohan didn’t disclose if YouTube would integrate NFTs, the integration of Web3 features opens up many possibilities. For example, we might see an NFT minting feature on the platform, or one that allows NFT holders exclusive access to a creator’s content.

NFTs can help creators find new ways to make more money, and YouTube can take a cut out of that in transaction fees.

This isn’t the first time YouTube has flagged its intentions of integrating Web3 technologies. Just last month, CEO Susan Wojcicki hinted at a possible NFT integration.

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Bitcoin Ethereum NFTs

‘Satoshibles’ Becomes First NFT Collection to Bridge Between ETH and BTC

As non-fungible tokens (NFTs) continue to dominate headlines, Stacks, an NFT platform leveraging the security of Bitcoin and the scalability of Ethereum, quietly made history. Its ‘Satoshibles‘ collection is officially the first to bridge between BTC and ETH.

Bitcoin-Backed NFTs

‘Satoshibles’ describes itself as the “NFT for Bitcoin” and comprises 5,000 algorithmically generated NFTs, each unique and hand illustrated. The collection is inspired by a photograph of Dorian Nakamoto, the man incorrectly alleged to be Satoshi Nakamoto in 2014.

Satoshible #1 inspired by Dorian Nakamoto. Source: Satoshibles

Satoshibles developers chose to create the collection on Stacks, saying:

It was only right to create the NFTs on a platform that honoured Satoshi’s legacy.

Brian Laughlan, creator of ‘Satoshibles’

However, in an effort not to split the crypto community, they decided to build a cross-chain bridge, StacksBridge, to allow Satoshibles holders to move NFTs between Ethereum-based platforms and Stacks.

How StacksBridge Works

To move NFTs between chains, Satoshibles NFT holders must simply connect to the bridge with a MetaMask Ethereum wallet and Hiro Stacks wallet. Thereafter, they need to pay transaction fees to execute the movement from one chain to the other.

Importantly, NFTs can only be active on one blockchain at a time, with access being locked on the other. Initially, to optimise security, the bridge is employing a model based on trust, however they are exploring a trustless version that runs on automated smart contracts.

The response to the news was overwhelmingly positive, typified by one Twitter user’s comment:

Although they’re mostly old and crusty, I think #Bitcoin investors secretly want to start dabbling in the NFT space. Love the @satoshibles vision of bringing NFTs to a space where there currently is none. First mover advantage is HUGE.

@El_Crypto_Chapo via Twitter

At the time of publication, Satoshible #4043 is the most expensive available for purchase, at 35,000 STX (approximately US$60,000).

Satoshible #4043. Source: Stacks

If you’re an NFT enthusiast keen to get involved, head over to Stacks, connect your Stacks wallet, and make your pick. Unlike CryptoPunks and Bored Apes, Satoshibles are still somewhat affordable.

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Crypto News Metaverse NFTs

McDonald’s Plans Move into the Metaverse with a Virtual Restaurant

Global fast food behemoth McDonald’s could be the next major company to enter the metaverse, having flagged the move with 10 new trademark applications to build a “virtual restaurant featuring actual and virtual goods”.

The Chicago-headquartered conglomerate filed the applications with the US Patent and Trademark Office on February 4, according to a tweet from prominent US trademarks lawyer Josh Gerben:

According to the filings, McDonald’s has applied for trademarks for its own virtual food and beverages, as well as “downloadable multimedia files containing artwork, text, audio and video files and non-fungible tokens [NFTs]”. It’s also applied to register its intellectual property covering “entertainment services”, specifically real-world and virtual concerts and events, though the primary filing is for “operating a virtual restaurant online featuring home delivery”.

McDonald’s Sees In Chinese New Year … in the Metaverse

The chain has over recent months shown interest in the crypto space with its own branded NFTs, including an exhibit last week honouring the Chinese Lunar New Year. As long ago as April 2021, McDonald’s France announced its intention to issue a limited series of digital artworks as NFTs.

McDonald’s celebrates Lunar New Year in the metaverse. Source: criptopato.com.br

Just last month, McDonald’s frivolously promoted a joke coin based on its fluffy purple McDonaldland character, Grimace. In a January 26 tweet replying to Elon Musk, the company proposed that if Tesla were to accept payments in Grimacecoin, then it would take Musk up on his offer to eat a Happy Meal on TV if McDonald’s accepted Dogecoin.

Not long after, several Grimacecoin-themed tokens were created across a handful of different blockchains by crypto opportunists wanting to cash in on the buying frenzy that followed.

Metaverse Market Could Be Worth $8 Trillion

McDonald’s isn’t the first multinational to show clear interest in the metaverse, with the likes of Adidas, Meta, Nike, Coca-Cola and Visa also climbing aboard the bandwagon in recent months.

After Facebook rebranded itself to Meta last November, Morgan Stanley analysts predicted that the metaverse market could ultimately be worth as much as US$8 trillion but also warned about high barriers to adoption.