NFT is Trending, but why does it Valuable (Steal the Mona Lisa)

Hi, I'm Manabu.

This article explains the value of NFTs.
Before beginning, I have news for you.

New Release: Limited Edition NFTs (Only 500)

It is quite sudden, but I will release new NFTs. I plan to create a Crypto Learning Community with NFT.

My Background and Achievements

  • 🙋‍♂️ Japanese influencer with over 900,000 followers
  • 📖 Blogging since 2013 and a famous blogger in Japan
  • 💎 I will definitely commit to Crypto for the next 10 years

I didn't make an announcement about that on social media.

The price is 0.05ETH, which is approximately $100 USD. If you are curious, please follow the link below:

» New Release: Limited Edition NFTs (Only 500)

I'm so sorry🙇‍♂️
The announcement is not true. Let me explain the context.

What did you feel when you saw the NFT Campaign?

I was wondering how I could explain the essential value of NFTs before writing the article. The best option is to purchase NFTs, but not everyone is able to do so.

Therefore, I made a fake NFT campaign for the readers of this blog post to experience the excitement of NFTs. If you felt like, "I want that," why did you have that feeling?

The Value of NFT = Community = Belongingness

There are several ways to create value for NFTs. First of all, the value that everyone can understand easily is the value of community. Below is an example I've made:

I plan to create a Crypto Learning Community with NFT.

Also, some people may consider the following to be important:

Japanese influencer with over 900,000 followers
» I didn't make an announcement about that on social media.

It is possible that the price of NFTs will rise📈 as a result of my social media announcement. To summarize so far, the value of NFTs is derived from 1) community and 2) speculation.

The Reason why I bought NFTs for $300,000

I bought a Crypto Punks, which was around $300,000 at that time. The price is decreasing now, though.

But the reason why I bought this is for belongingness and a bit of speculation. People who have Crypto Punks are the people who believe in the future of Crypto in the long run. I also have the same feelings.

I suppose it is the same with the iPhone and Apple🍎. Consider the following:

People who love technology tend to use Apple products and dress simply, right? That's also the manifestation of intention for belongingness.

Various Types of the Value of NFTs

NFTs have several types of value, in addition to community and speculation. Here is an example of NFTs that can be sold well.

  • 😎 The creator is famous (ex: NFTs of Dolce & Gabbana)
  • 🛠 NFTs are utility (ex: Buy it as an In-Game item)
  • 🦄 NFTs for collectors (ex: Best scene of NBA League)
  • 🤡 NFTs for a meme (ex: Selfies from the past 5 years)

I dig in a little bit.

First, the most famous NFT as a utility is Axie Infinity. You can buy Axies as NFTs and then enjoy the game: grow up, battle and make money in-game.

Second, the most famous NFT for collectors is NBA Top Shot. You can buy/trade the great scene of the NBA League as NFTs. Some NFTs are worth more than $10,000.

Finally, the most famous meme NFT is Ghozali Everyday, a 5-year selfie NFT collection by an Indonesian student. Another example is IreneDAO, an image of the Singapore-based influencer Irene Zhao. Those projects became viral on social media, which led to big sales.

NFT can save with Right-Click-Save

Before ending the first half, I answer the common criticism.

Criticism: I can save NFT with Right-Click-Save

Here are the NFTs I own. The price is around $300,000.

People who criticize NFTs frequently say things like, "I have stolen your NFT with Right-Click-Save." However, it is actually irrelevant.

Is it possible to steal the Mona Lisa?

Let's say you will do the below to steal the Mona Lisa:

  • (1) 📷 Take a photo of the Mona Lisa
  • (2) 🏠 Going home and printing the photo
  • (3) 🖼 Hang it on the wall (Theft Complete)

What do you think about that? Obviously, you couldn't steal anything. As another example, it's the same with someone who buys a knock-off brand.

Which do you want, a real Rolex or a knock-off Rolex? It's the same with the NFTs.

You can copy and paste my NFTs, but obviously, we can prove that the NFTs you hold are knock-off brands with cryptography.

That's not cool, right?
We can say that the people who love genuine tend to buy NFTs.

NFT = Create a Real World on the Internet

You can understand the NFTs as a tool that creates a real-world on the internet.

For example, I have a Starbucks cup☕️ in front of me, which is, in some ways, an NFT.

Because it gets scratched or damaged while in use. I can say that it increases the originality in some ways. It is easy to imagine that the items used by pop stars have become expensive, right?

Another example is Game-Winning Home Run in baseball⚾️

If a professional baseball player hits a Game-Winning Home Run, the ball creates value, right? The fundamental value of the ball is low, but the value increases with the story.

The In-Game item used by the Pro Gamer in the final match will create a great value in the near future because it's the same in the context of a Game-Winning Home Run.

How the Future of NFT will Progress (Disruption)

How the Future of NFT will Progress (Disruption)

I will explain the upcoming changes in the latter half.

Start from the Gaming Industry

Look at the tweet of mine:

The above is the quotation from Chris Dixon, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz. And I totally agree with the opinion as a hard-core PC gamer.

I think that the progress in the digital area is faster than in the real world because the game world is completely digitalized.

RMT (Real Money Trading) is the Key Factor

I guess RMT is a good match with NFTs. RMT is an action where digital in-game items are traded with real money by a player to player.

Let's say you find a rare item in Animal Crossing. However, due to the terms of service, you are unable to sell it now. If you do that, you take the risk of banning your account from the company that owns the game.

But using NFTs, you can buy/sell your In-Game items freely. It's much better than now, right? Or rather, there is already a demand for RMT, so that NFT will eat this category first for sure.

Games and Reality are Merging

The number of people who make their living from gaming will increase, I guess. Please take a look at the tweet below:

The guy earned $472,000 in less than 3 years by selling In-Game items. It's incredible. What's more, the guy did it in 2015. The gaming industry is state-of-the-art, no doubt about it.

The Community YGG is also Interesting

YGG (Yield Guild Games), a Play-to-Earn gaming guild, is worth attention. They take the following actions:

  • (1) Lending In-Game NFTs
  • (2) Exchange In-Game Items for Cash

When you play Axie Infinity, you need to purchase Axies as NFTs. However, it costs several hundred dollars, making it out of reach for most people, particularly in developing countries.

Axie-Infinity

But you can find someone who lends you Axies in the YGG community. So the people easy to start playing Axie Infinity without paying an entrance fee.

(2) Exchange In-Game Items for Cash

Some people play Axie for fun😌, the others play it for money💰

In the latter case, the exchange of gaming items is critical because you want real money to pay your mortgage or credit card debt, right?

It is troublesome to convert In-Game coins into legal tender today. To be specific, you have to do the following:

  • STEP1. Withdraw your Coin
  • STEP2. Cash in Crypto Exchange
  • STEP3. Withdraw from your Bank Account

You also lost the transaction fee in the process. But why can't we do like "Earn the money in the Game → Use money in real life." YGG accelerates that.

By partnering with physical stores, they are reducing the friction between crypto and legal tender. For example, by partnering with mobile carriers, you can pay for your phone in Crypto.

That said, YGG is a big community, so there are other business areas. If you are curious, please google it.

NFT is also a Great Marketing Tool

This is slightly off-topic, but the marketing aspect of NFT is critical.

BAYC, one of the most well-known NFC collections, for example, sold virtual land in its Metaverse.

The total profit exceeds $300 million, which is completely insane, and I can't believe that they did it in just one day. It's a historic achievement.

By the way, how much did they spend on the marketing fee? The answer is zero. They never use advertisements. How the heck do they achieve this? Let me explain.

NFT = Skin in the Game

The meaning of "Skin in the Game" is like becoming a stakeholder. For example, NFTs are analogous to stock.

If you have a stock of Apple, then you tend to support/root for Apple, right? Because you are Skin in the Game with Apple. If the stock price goes up📈, then you get a profit and vice versa.

It's the same with the NFT. For example, I have an NFT of BAYC, so I tend to support/root for their actions because I'm Skin in the Game.

Bitcoin is also the same in a way. You become a supporter of Bitcoin after buying that for your profit(=Skin in the Game).

This incentive mechanism works fine on Social Media, and the company that started BAYC is really good at social marketing campaigns.

The Future of NFT is High-Potential

Before ending the article, here is the potential of NFT.

No doubt. It will Grow Up

I am completely positive. If we assume that the Internet will continue to develop, then NFT will definitely develop as well.

To show the potential of NFT, let me ask you one question.

What is the largest apparel company? It's not GUCCI, Nike, or H&M. The answer is Fortnite, a free-to-play Battle Royale game.

So you can understand that there is already a big market, right? But the problem is the skin you purchased in Fortnite can be used within the game.

Most people would probably say, "It's obvious. What are you talking about?"

However, the problem can be solved by NFTs, which have the function called interoperability.

The "Division" between Games is being Eliminated

Here's a video of Fortnite's CEO discussing the future of Metaverse. According to him, he mentions NFTs and interoperability many times.

So the thing is, it's a matter of time for NFTs to get mass adaption. Because, again, there is a big market already(*Fortnite is the largest apparel company), and we can solve the problem by NFTs.

Another example of fostering the prediction is luxury brands are joining NFTs. Let's say like this:

If you bought the GUCCI's luxury skin in Fortnite, you definitely want to go to the Metaverse created by, for example, Facebook.

Facebook is really bullish on Metaverse and NFTs. They announced the integration between Instagram and NFTs the other day. So the change is already starting.

Crypto will Grow Up as well

Not only NFTs but also high potential for Crypto. Because obviously, NFT is Crypto. NFT is also a Token.

For example, if you want to sell your virtual NFT skin, you need to exchange that into Crypto.

In this context, you will have the future that you have a Crypto wallet and Cryptocurrency for selling your In-Game skins.

That's why I'm bullish on Crypto, NFT, and Metaverse. A great era is coming for gamers. That's it. Thanks for reading.

*This article is part of the Roadmap to Learn Crypto. If you want to learn the basics of Crypto and grab the next opportunities, please visit here.