The High Price Of Digital Exclusivity For NFTs. Is It Worth It?
Non-fungible tokens have taken the digital world by storm in recent months, with everything from digital art to tweets selling for millions of dollars
NFTs, baby! The hot new thing in the digital world that’s got everyone talking. But before you go dropping your life savings on a tweet or a pixelated cat, let’s take a moment to consider the price we’re paying for this new form of digital exclusivity.
First things first, the environmental cost of NFTs is no joke. Creating and trading these bad boys requires a ton of energy, and some estimates by climate activists say the carbon footprint of the NFT market is equivalent to 67,000 cars driving around for a year. Yikes!
But it’s not just Mother Nature that’s taking a hit.
NFTs are also making it hard for regular folks like you and me to get in on the action. A recent report found that the top 10% of buyers in Web3 are responsible for over 80% of all NFT sales. So, unless you’re a trust fund baby or a tech billionaire, you might want to sit this one out. The odds are probably more in your favor of getting a contract to play in the NFL compared to landing a Blue Chip NFT at drop.
Of course this is a hot take but on the bright side, NFTs are giving creators a new way to monetize their work and take control of it. Digital art is selling for millions of dollars and tweets are going for more than your favorite Ferrari.
For independent creators, this could be a game-changer!
However…
NFTs don’t actually give you true ownership of IP. You might own an NFT of a digital artwork, but the artist or company still holds the copyright, meaning they can continue to use and profit from it without your permission. So you’re basically just buying a fancy digital certificate of authenticity.
And let’s not forget about the speculation. NFT prices are skyrocketing and crashing faster than Elon Musk’s Twitter account.
This volatility has some folks calling NFTs a bubble, and with little regulation in the market, it’s hard to know when it will burst and who will get burned.
Security and storage plays a role in the problem
NFTs are about as portable as a fridge. Unlike physical art, NFTs are stored on a blockchain, meaning you can’t physically take them with you since its stored digitally on wallets. Now to tech savvy Web3 users, this is not even an argument. But from a Web2 natives standpoint for ease of use, most have no clue where to start let alone how to transfer the goods. So, good luck passing them down to your grandkids.
Then there’s the issue of fraud. With no safeguards in place, buyers could be paying top dollar for NFTs that aren’t genuine or have been tampered with. Just look at the mess going on at OpenSea. It’s like buying a knock-off designer bag, but instead of feeling guilty yet still being able to pass it off as real Gucci to your friends, you’re just left feeling scammed.
In conclusion, NFTs are the hot new thing, but before you jump on the bandwagon, consider the cost. The environment, accessibility, true ownership, speculation, lack of portability, fraud, and ethical concerns are all things to weigh before investing in NFTs.
Or, you know, you could just stick to collecting stickers on your phone.
Zein Zaioud — Founder @ Verse.audio
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