Disney seeks corporate lawyer for 'emerging technologies' and NFTs

Published at: Sept. 26, 2022

The Walt Disney Company could be on the verge of expanding into the crypto space after posting a new job for an “experienced corporate attorney” to work on “emerging technologies” such as nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and the Metaverse.

According to the Sept. 23 listing on the Disney careers website, the company is hiring for a “Principal Counsel — Corporate Transactions, Emerging Technologies & NFTs” to work on transactions involving NFTs, the Metaverse, blockchain, and decentralized finance (DeFi).

Specifically the entertainment conglomerate is seeking someone to provide “full product life cycle legal advice and support for global NFT products" and ensure they comply with all current laws and regulations on U.S. soil and internationally.

Other duties include "due diligence for NFT, blockchain, third-party marketplace and cloud provider projects,” as well as providing regular legal advice on cryptocurrency-related matters, and digital currency and guiding Disney's efforts in relation to emerging technologies.

The new role comes as The Walt Disney Company has been slowly positioning itself around the crypto, blockchain, and Metaverse space.

During the company's fourth-quarter earnings call in November 2021, CEO Bob Chapek said the firm was preparing to blend physical and digital assets in the Metaverse.

Weeks later the company filed a patent for a “virtual-world simulator” referring to a potential theme-park metaverse.

According to the patent application, Disney's possible foray into the Metaverse could involve visitors to their theme parks using mobile phones to generate and project personalized 3D effects onto nearby physical spaces, such as walls and other objects.

At the time it was reported there were "no current plans" to use the"virtual-world simulator” patent, however, the recent job listing could be a sign that this may be changing.

Earlier this year, the company focused on augmented reality (AR), nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and artificial intelligence (AI) in its 2022 Disney Accelerator Program, which selected six “growth-stage” companies to benefit from its business development platform.

Companies selected for the program this year included layer-2 scaling platform Polygon, along with two other Web3 projects — Flickplay, a Web3 application that allows users to discover NFTs via augmented reality (AR), and Lockerverse, a Web3 storytelling platform that connects creators and brands.