Gloves are Off: This Week in Web3
👋🏽 Hello everyone, gm gm, WELCOME BACK to another edition of the Overpriced JPEGs newsletter, where we’re catching you up to speed on the world of web3, NFTs, and the metaverse.
Before you dive in, be sure to check out today’s pod, an interview with the one + only Zeneca 33 on what he’s learned one year into running Zen Academy.
Chika Uwazie is bringing Balaji’s network state vision to life with the creation of the first digital nation, Afropolitan (Balaji is an investor).
Instagram spilled the deets on their NFT integration: Royalties, fees, and why they’re not calling them NFTs. Sara Baumann thinks this is a boon for content creators.
JimmyT.eth and CalcioNFT from Right Click Save joined Carly for the weekly recap. Catch up on Art Gobblers, Meta Angels’ acquisition, and everything else you missed here.
🥶 OpenSea’s Creator Royalties Dilemma
OS launching on-chain *enforcement of creator fees for new collections
OS hasn’t decided what to do about existing collections writing:
“we’re considering options ranging from continuing to enforce off-chain fees for some subsets of collections, to allowing optional creator fees, to collaborating on other on-chain enforcement options for creators. We recognize not all creators, collections, and communities are the same and we are looking to create a long-term policy that reflects that.”
But *this tweet is making creators nervous with many assuming fees are going to go to zero: Fewocious, DrifterShoots, Amber Vittoria, Gordon Goner, BETTY + others seeking to organize
Enforcement may raise a litany of potential legal issues
🥵 Binance v. FTX Boils Over
Binance announced it was *saving* FTX from liquidity crunch after …
CZ took on Sam Bankman-Fried in what looks like a run on the bank in a bid for a targeted hostile takeover
Full back story on the beef beautifully laid out here
US regulators investigating whether FTX properly handled client funds
Dominoes are falling fast; will this ultimately lead to quicker regulation?
😥 NFTs not Immune to Tech Layoffs
The Feds’ plan to stop inflation + spark unemployment appears to be working
Cool Cats laid off staff in a very un-cool way; received unflattering reviews
Dapper Labs had a 22% reduction after securing $600m+ in funding
Mythical Games cut 10% following departure of 3 top execs
😱 Is ETH a Security?
SEC wins suit; declares LBRY operated as an unregistered security
💀 The Taxman Cometh
IRS preps for a crack down on crypto tax evasion this season
Cryptopunks are the 1st NFT in the Guinness Book of World Records
Highest # of NFT projects launched in Q3 2022 [36k v. 5k a year ago]
Y00ts finally revealed their artwork to mixed reviews + gets heat for reinstating royalties weeks after moving to zero royalties
DrifterShoots announced IG “digital collectible” drop
Republic of Palau launches a digital residency + blockchain-based verified ID
Jadu’s awarding sizable grants for TV pilots and original songs that expand collection lore
Metaverse + Fashion: Roblox kicks off Metaverse Fashion Trend Report; Burberry introduces in-game Minecraft experience
Vertu launched a very luxury web3 phone + Solana partners w/Helium for its new Saga phones
Metaplex announces Solana Beeple NFTs; backtracks when Beeple denies it
Vitalik revealed quite the complex roadmap diagram
NFTs minted in OS’s ‘shared storefront’ has an exploit script allowing OS to transfer all tokens in the collection
“Hey Do, I just wanted to let you know jail isn't that bad, it's not the worst thing ever so don't fret.” - Martin Shkreli to Do Kwon on the UpOnly pod
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