Nonfungible tokens (NFT) have created an environment where artists can take control of their work and finances. Experts agree that artists and creators that tokenize their work and issue it as NFTs no longer have to deal with third-party intermediaries. Although galleries have traditionally done the leg work in attracting buyers, they are seeing their utility diminish as cheaper decentralized apps (DApps) make it easy for investors to connect directly with their favorite artists. This is creating a new paradigm in the creator economy driven by NFTs. As the creator economy has topped $100 billion with plenty of upsides, and …

Metaverse events at ancient and historical sites could soon shape up to be an alternate future for tourism. Owners of physical castles and villas who have drafted up augmented reality blueprints of their properties think their ambitious plans to attract visitors in the metaverse will work, as virtual events can help them pay the hefty maintenance bills for their aging properties and also offer a chance to change historical narratives. The metaverse tourism model was expedited by downturns in tourism brought about by COVID-19, but the industry may have already been heading that way. Currently, major metaverse platforms are clunky, …

The billion-dollar music industry has shown recent interest in nonfungible tokens (NFTs) as musicians everywhere are beginning to understand the power of moving away from centralized business models. This concept is currently being demonstrated by early innovators like the popular rapper Snoop Dogg, who recently acquired Death Row Records with plans to transform the company into the first NFT recording label in the Metaverse. Country music icon Dolly Parton also recently launched her first NFT collection dubbed “Dollyverse,” which consists of tokenized artwork and music as part of a promo for her album Run, Rose, Run. NFTs: A topic of …

Recording artists Snoop Dogg and Billy Ray Cyrus have teamed up to release a new smash single, “A Hard Working Man.” The hip hop-country mashup, produced by the legendary Avila Brothers, will debut on April 2 during Grammy weekend in Las Vegas. Cyrus’ 2019 hit remix of “Old Town Road” with rapper Lil Nas X made history by going 16x multi-platinum in the United States. Asked about his genre-bending approach to music, Cyrus replied, “My philosophy to making music is no limitations. No rules, no limits, no preconceived notions. Don’t try to think inside the box or outside the box, …

This past weekend, Decentraland hosted the Metaverse Fashion Week, or MVFW, a four-day digital fashion event that staged wearables on virtual runways, organized discussion panels, and housed shopping experiences. A lineup of both legacy luxury labels and digital brands participated, including Dolce & Gabbana, Etro, Tommy Hilfiger, Estée Lauder, and Elie Saab. Meanwhile, digital-native fashion houses Auroboros, DressX, and republique hosted immersive spaces and stores within specific fashion districts, designated by coordinates on a map. Just like New York Fashion Week events may take place across different boroughs of the city, so did Decentraland's MVFW materialize across different districts. Dolce …

Since their explosion last year, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have shown their appeal to collectors, investors and traders alike. They have especially gained attention in the art world, where an item’s provenance is everything, and owning the official, unique version of an item is much more valuable than a copy or duplicate. Some have postulated that artists creating and storing pieces on-chain can use the technology as proof of ownership for popular art forms. Among the various artforms to take advantage of NFTs, photography has also found its place, but what is the immediate value it brings for artists and consumers? …

Content constitutes the essence of the internet and comes in many different forms that the current Web2 internet iteration supports — text, audio, video or a mix of all three. However, content is scarcely a free resource. It is content creators who are now becoming opinion leaders, influencers and the cornerstones of so many of the critical services businesses rely on, such as advertising, marketing and public relations management. The need for content and its strive for independence — embodied by thousands of bloggers and indie performers — has spawned an immense online economy that trades talent and often rakes …

The rise of the Metaverse has resulted in an entirely new digital economy, one defined by virtual experiences and interactions. In turn, metaverse ecosystems consisting of avatars are also emerging, allowing individuals to express themselves through digital customizable 3D characters. This idea was recently broadcasted to the mainstream when Facebook’s parent company, Meta, introduced a series of inclusive avatars. While the Metaverse may sound futuristic, recent findings from technology research and consulting company Gartner predict that 25% of people will have spent at least one hour per day in the Metaverse by 2026. Gartner vice president Marty Resnick has also …

After two years and many COVID-19 restrictions finally subsiding, the world is welcoming the return of in-person theater, movies, comedy, music and sports. This has left some wondering what will happen to the legions of digital creatives who occupied and entertained us while normal life was at a standstill — and to the multibillion-dollar economy they inhabit. Will the world forget the platforms and artists they discovered during the pandemic now the doors of festivals, fashion shows and concerts are open to them again? Is the creator economy, which recent estimates suggest will exceed $100 billion this year, strong enough …

On Wednesday, Warner Music Group announced it had entered into a partnership with fantasy-themed collectible card game developer Splinterlands. The two companies will collaborate and enable opportunities for WMG artists to create and develop play-to-earn, arcade-style blockchain games. Last month, WMG made its first entry into the nonfungible token, or NFT, metaverse realm in a partnership with The Sandbox with the goal of providing WMG artists another outlet with which to engage their fans. In a statement, Oana Ruxandra, chief digital officer and executive vice president of business development at WMG, said: “By partnering with Splinterlands to build custom tokenized …

After a banner year of 2021 for individual object sales through nonfungible tokens (NFTs), 2022 is poised to be the year of MetaFi. A recap of Beeple, Christie’s, Visa and endless aping-in celebrities hardly feels necessary, except to point out that we seem to be standing on (or perhaps have already crossed over) a fundamental precipice. While the rocket-propelled ascent of NFT prices will not continue forever, numerous voices have predicted that a mature tech stack for discovering, vetting, valuing, trading and protecting collections of digital assets will soon emerge, without a crash. But these optimistic takes may even be …

From video game enthusiasts monetizing their passions as shout casters to fashion influencers supercharging their careers into livestreamers on e-commerce platforms, the creator economy flourished, evolved and matured in the past year. Largely catalyzed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, contemporary creators benefited from the gradual shift in consumer behaviors as more people came online across the globe. Now valued at over $100 billion, the creator economy is witnessing staggering growth as the worlds of e-commerce, social media and online communities converge. With opportunities mounting in social tokens and corresponding virtual playgrounds such as the Metaverse, the year ahead seems to …