Are NFTs a bubble, or are they here to stay?
The fall in NFT prices has generated a considerable wave of scepticism amongst society, and has contributed to the perception that NFTs are objects of speculation without real social or cultural value (“Just a JPEG”). However, NFTs still have a valuable place in the artworld as certificates of authenticity and objects within the metaverse, a new digital tool whose social utility is undeniable. Companies such as Metaseum, with good knowledge of the market and with a clear B2B and B2C strategy, maintain the quality and value of NFTs through good practice and by integrating NFT sale and purchase within the logic of the metaverse and traditional artwork exchange.
If a closer look is given, we can see that the crash in NFT prices is only partial. It is clearly no longer a market famous for its exponential growth, and new names are bound to meet less success, while established brands such as Bored Ape Yacht Club have managed to maintain the value of their collections. Rather, the fall in prices is an opportunity to reconsider the business model of NFTs, since individuals might struggle to make a name as easily in the marketplace and new collections will prove to be much less profitable than before. This is why those invested in the crypto world must look towards corporations and other institutions who might find NFTs as useful instrument for digital property, from digital artwork to establishing land property in the metaverse, rather than objects of speculation for individual stakeholders.
The principle motive for us to believe in NFTs is the fact that digital innovations are an intrinsic part of modern social and business interactions, and as in the physical world, ownership ensures the legitimacy of these interactions between individuals. Since each NFT is uniquely identifiable, can represent a real world item and is stored on a blockchain, which records ownership and transactions, NFTs are a secure and decentralised way of proving ownership and authenticity to unique items in the metaverse, such as artworks and land. These have tangible socioeconomic repercussions in the physical world like greater visibility for art and exchange of physical goods through the metaverse. In fact, NFTs will remain an important vehicle for the world of art, since museums and artists will still be able to sell digital art and digitalise some of their physical artworks. With the help of NFTs, activities in the metaverse will be similar to what is currently done in physical reality, since certificates of authenticity have been a fundamental pillar of modern art for decades and NFT auctions in the Metaverse emulate auctions of physical artworks.
This is why at Metaseum we believe that NFTs have a bright future along with the Metaverse, and our vision is one where these digital items contribute to the dissemination of culture to new spaces and create a more sustainable form of tourism, while respecting above all the interests of museums and their visitors. For us NFTs are above all certificates of authenticity for art, which not only confirm ownership but bring the owner into a wider network of museums, with access to special events and activities in physical reality and the metaverse. Thus the NFT collections we design for museums will always be with a greater social purpose in mind, which is bringing art to everybody’s homes while offering opportunities for ownership of digital artwork for those who want to get involved a step further.
The recent collapse in NFT prices is undeniable, and has affected many stakeholders. We cannot predict if the market will bounce back, but we know for certain that NFTs are more than a temporary trend and that they will be useful in the future thanks to the growing popularity of the metaverse and NFTs’ linkage to art. At Metaseum we focus on the intrinsic value of NFTs, not as a profitable scheme but as the best way of bringing the digital revolution to the world of art.
