Non-fungible token (NFT)

Wormhole Releases Solana and Ethereum NFT Bridge — A Bi-Directional Highway for Blockchain Collectibles

23/09/2021 by Idelto Editor

Last Friday, blockchain project the Wormhole Network launched the protocol’s ethereum solana bridge which enables users to exchange assets from both networks in a cross-chain fashion. Five days later, the Wormhole Network team announced the launch of a non-fungible token (NFT) bridge for transferring NFTs between both blockchains.

Wormhole Launches Ethereum Solana NFT Bridge

The cryptocurrency network Solana (SOL) has been making waves during the last few months and recently made it into the top ten crypto assets ranked by market valuation. SOL has gained more than 12% today and 30-day stats show the crypto asset is up 92.3%. Five days ago, Bitcoin.com News reported on the ethereum solana bridge launched by the project the Wormhole Network. The launch of the new service allows Solana protocol participants and Ethereum blockchain users to move assets back and forth between the chains.

Wormhole is following up with a new service for non-fungible token (NFT) assets held on both chains. “Today we’re incredibly excited to announce the launch of our NFT bridge between Ethereum and Solana,” Wormhole tweeted on Wednesday. “Users will now be able to send Ethereum and Solana NFTs cross-chain. This includes your favourite (wrapped) Cryptopunks, @DegenApeAcademy and @BoredApeYC and more,” the team added.

The new tool the Wormhole team created opens up a “bi-directional highway for more than 6.68 million NFTs minted on Ethereum,” a statement sent to Bitcoin.com News from the Wormhole team details. Records from Solanartnft show that SPL assets (Solana-minted NFTs) have seen an aggregate total of 2,633,632 SOL in volume.

Wormhole Plans to Launch NFT Verification Tool

The ethereum solana NFT bridge tool can be leveraged to list a Solana-based NFT on a marketplace like Opensea. By bridging the NFT assets to Ethereum, the assets are locked and a “wrapped” version on Ethereum will exist. According to the Wormhole team, the transfer takes about five minutes and then the SPL will be controllable like any other ERC721 standard token.

“Conversely, anyone can also take ERC-721 NFTs and transfer them to Solana so users can list their e.g. BAYC NFT on Solana markets,” the Wormhole Network operators explained.

The Wormhole team also detailed that down the line, Wormhole developers plan to add a user interface that allows users to check which original NFT (on the original chain) is backing the asset so authenticity can be verified. Hendrik Hofstadt, director of special projects at Jump Crypto, former co-founder of Certus One, and the lead contributor to Wormhole, told Bitcoin.com News verification will be important.

“Imagine a ‘wrapped/bridged NFT’ as a kind of check or claim that grants you the right to redeem the original NFT on the chain it came from,” Hofstadt said.

What do you think about Wormhole’s NFT bridge between Ethereum and Solana? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Marvel Comics Tells Freelance Artists Not to Mint Marvel-Brand NFTs, Publisher to ‘Introduce Opportunities for Creators’

12/09/2021 by Idelto Editor

Last March, the comic book publisher DC Comics told freelancers that intellectual property (IP) and characters owned by DC Comics were off-limits in regards to freelancers leveraging the IP for non-fungible token (NFT) asset sales. A recent report indicates that Marvel Comics has also told freelance artists that the sale of NFT products featuring Marvel’s IP is off-limits as well.

DC Comics and Marvel Tell Freelance Artists to Hold Off on Auctioning NFTs Featuring Company’s IP

A report published on Friday shows that the world’s largest comic book publisher Marvel Comics does not want artists to use Marvel’s products and IP for NFT sales.

Back in March, Bitcoin.com News reported on DC Comics’ legal executive sending a letter to staffers and freelance artists telling them to cease and desist NFT initiatives that involved DC Comics’ IP. Before the letter went out, comic book artist José Delgo sold a Wonder Woman-themed NFT collection via Makersplace.

“Please note that the offering for sale of any digital images featuring DC’s intellectual property with or without NFTs, whether rendered for DC’s publications or rendered outside the scope of one’s contractual engagement with DC, is not permitted,” the letter from DC’s legal team noted. Following the letter, one artist uploaded the letter to Opensea and sold it as NFT art called “A Marvel to Behold” for $2,000 worth of ethereum (ETH).

The report concerning Marvel’s cease and desist stems from a story published by the Bloomberg author Madis Kabash.

Marvel Plans to ‘Introduce New Opportunities for Marvel Creators,’ New Jersey Comic Book Dealer Says the Game Has Changed

Bitcoin.com News has been reporting on Marvel’s entry into the NFT space as the comic book publisher teamed up with Orbis Blockchain Technologies Limited and the Veve Digital Collectibles app.

Captain America and Spider-Man NFTs from Marvel and the Veve App.

At the beginning of August, the company celebrated “Marvel Month” and introduced Spider-Man non-fungible tokens. At the end of August, Marvel dropped Captain America NFTs for Marvel’s 81st anniversary. In a statement sent to Bloomberg contributor Madis Kabash, Marvel explained that the company will provide Marvel creators with opportunities. Marvel said:

[Marvel Comics] plans to introduce new opportunities for Marvel creators on Veve’s platform.

The Bloomberg editorial discussed the subject with members of the comic book industry and spoke with the New Jersey-based comic dealer Jason Schachter. The secondary dealer explained that artists used to be able to sell originals with no hassles and it was this way for “decades.”

“Creators have always had the power to sell their originals directly,” Schachter stressed in his interview.

What do you think about Marvel Comics telling creators and freelancers not to create NFTs using Marvel characters? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Marvel to Launch Spider-Man NFTs This Week — NFT Comic, ‘Super-D Figures’ to Follow

06/08/2021 by Idelto Editor

On August 5, Orbis Blockchain Technologies Limited and Marvel Entertainment kicked off the Veve Digital Collectibles’ “Marvel Month” celebration. The two companies plan to issue the first non-fungible token (NFT) assets featuring the Marvel Super Hero, Spider-Man.

The Orbis Veve App and Marvel to Launch the First Spider-Man Statue NFTs

This week, Spider-Man and non-fungible token (NFT) fans will be able to purchase and interact with a set of five unique digital statues of Marvel’s Spider-Man on August 7 at 8 a.m. (PT). Bitcoin.com News reported on Marvel Entertainment’s partnership with Orbis at the end of June. “The Spider-Man series drop is the first of many digital statues, digital comic books, and other digital collectibles in Veve’s Marvel Month initiative,” the announcement details.

According to the press release Veve’s Marvel Spider-Man statue initiative will include:

Common – Spider-Man – The Amazing Spider-Man Price: $40.00 – Quantity: 32,000
Uncommon – Spider-Man – Hangin’ Out Price: $50.00 – Quantity: 16,000
Rare – Spider-Man – Jump Into Action Price: $100.00 – Quantity: 9,000
Ultra-Rare – Spider-Man – Animated Price: $250.00 – Quantity: 2,500
Secret-Rare – Spider-Man – Ultimate Animated Price: $400.00 – Quantity: 1,000

Marvel and Veve say that the Spider-Man series of statues is just the beginning, as NFTs like a unique Marvel Comics Issue #1 from 1939 will be released. “Each version will have a different cover and a different level of rarity and offered in a ‘blind box’ format for $6.99,” the announcement details. An exclusive line of “Super-D figures” from Marvel will be revealed on the Veve application as well. “Each digital figure will have a different level of rarity and will also be sold in a blind box format for $13.00,” Marvel says.

“Spider-Man is one of the most legendary Super Heroes in the Marvel Universe, so there was no better way to kick off our global digital collectibles experience with Veve,” Dan Buckley, the president of Marvel Entertainment remarked in a statement. “We can’t wait to bring Marvel fans and collectors even more exciting drops throughout August and beyond.”

Marvel’s arch-rival DC Comics will be releasing NFT someday in the future as well, as the comic book creator hinted at releasing DC Comics NFTs at some point in time. The only reason the public found out about this information is because DC Comics’ legal expert told artists and comic book freelancers not to produce DC Comics-related NFTs without permission.

It seems, at least for now, Marvel Entertainment has beat DC Comics to the NFT race and the comic book creator will have to catch up.

What do you think about Marvel’s upcoming Spider-Man NFT drop on August 7? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Study Highlights the Most Common NFT Scams Amid the Current Mainstream Hype

02/04/2021 by Idelto Editor

As non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are becoming a global phenomenon increasingly due to their mainstream adoption, there are also concerns about the surge of related scams. A recent study revealed the most common NFT scams that are spreading on the net.

Suspicious Domain Registrations With ‘NFT’ Word Surged 250% in March 2021

According to the research conducted by security experts of Bolster, replica stores are on a bullish trend, as the recent figures show a boost in the number of domain registrations.

Scammers have been actively setting up replica stores with suspicious-looking domains with names such as “rarible,” “opensea,” and “audious.”

Per the study, such domain registrations have skyrocketed nearly 300% in March 2021 when compared to previous months.

The replica stores or phony copycats, says Bolster, often rely on using the same design of legitimate NFT stores, even replicating their logos.

Similarly, fake NFT stores are considered a variant of the replica NFT stores, with the difference that the first one doesn’t impersonate the design of an existent legitimate store. That said, the fake stores sell NFTs that don’t exist whatsoever.

Also, figures are not optimistic in terms of stopping the bullish steam of the fake NFT stores. In March 2021, suspicious domain registrations with the word “nft” accounted for 17,118, representing an increase of 250% compared to February 2021.

Bolster highlights other types of NFT-related scams, such as selling “counterfeit NFTs” by impersonating original artworks. Researchers elaborated on the matter:

If you were following NFTs in the recent weeks, you would be aware of the Banksy-styled artworks sold on the NFT markets for $1 million in crypto. Although I do not want to get into whether that was a copyright/ trademark issue, this sets a precursor for what is to come. Counterfeit and real-world ‘inspired’ artwork/content will become a problem shortly. Users need to be careful about what they are buying or bidding. It is difficult to verify the seller on such online marketplaces.

The Uptrend of Scams Is Far From Slowing Down

As usual in the crypto sphere, the NFT landscape is not exempt from dealing with fake giveaways or airdrops. According to Bolster, “thousands of such scams” are spotted by them every month. Telegram, Facebook, Twitter, and Discord are the most common way to spread fake giveaway campaigns.

In the same line, scammers are using social media networks to perform NFT-related brand impersonation. Bolster highlighted an example of several active fake Rarible.com communities in Telegram.

But the firm doesn’t believe the NFT scams’ growing trend will slow down soon:

These scams will get more complex and sophisticated. Scammers will keep innovating to make sure users fall for these. Not just NFTs, when buying anything online, a buyer needs to be aware of where and to whom they are giving away their credit card or banking information.

What are your thoughts on the study’s findings? Let us know in the comments section below.

Italian Copyright Agency Selects Algorand to Create Over Four Million NFTs to Represent Author Rights

27/03/2021 by Idelto Editor

The non-fungible token fever witnessed over the last few months is catching the copyright management agencies’ attention. One of them, located in Italy, has chosen a blockchain company to create its own NFTs.

SIAE Expects to Guarantee Copyright Protection With NFTs for the Next 139 Years

According to the announcement, Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori (SIAE), founded in 1883, picked Algorand to manage the rights of over 95,000 authors in the form of non-fungible tokens. Both parties had been working on the project since 2019, said Algorand.

In a first instance, 4 million NFTs were created to represent selected SIAE authors’ rights. Per SIAE, by digitizing these rights on blockchain technology, authors could ensure that their copyrights are globally protected on a transparent, open infrastructure.

Gaetano Blandini, the general manager of SIAE, pointed out that the move seeks to guarantee protection for the next 139 years. He added:

We are not interested in building technological infrastructures to generate profit. Instead, our goal has been and always will be to create value addition for our members. This is why we can afford to talk about open infrastructures and make all our know-how available to the community. Blockchain technology is definitely an interesting strand to continue exploring because of its transparency and efficiency – by design – features, which are fundamental for those who, like us, manage the salary of other people’s hard work.

Could the NFTs Become a ‘Game-Changing’ in the Copyright Management Business?

Moreover, Italy’s largest collective management organization forecasts that such a move will open the doors to transition onto new blockchain-based platforms that “will rapidly and profoundly change the business models” in the rights management industry.

Silvio Micali, MIT Professor and founder of Algorand, is optimistic about the use of NFTs to handle copyrights, and SIAE’s maneuver can also be “a game-changing” in the business:

SIAE has brought an ambitious project to life, where transparency and simplicity in data management are becoming a new reality for their industry. SIAE is a forward-thinking organization that will open up new opportunities as they build the foundations for new economic models.

What are your thoughts on using NFTs to manage copyrights? Let us know in the comments section below.