NFTs and everything you need to know about them

NFTs have taken over the social world like nothing else in the last few months. Not only that, they are ever evolving. Every few weeks, something new seems to happen in the NFT world.   

One day you hear about autographed tweets, other days it’s selling illustrations or music or even self-designed toilet paper.  NFTs have taken the world by storm and it doesn’t seem to be stopping anything soon.  

Before we learn about all the super cool things happening in the NFT-world, let’s understand what they actually are. 

What does NFT mean? 

The term NFT stands for Non-Fungible-Token which means an NFT can neither be replaced nor interchanged because it has unique properties. For example, a bitcoin is a fungible asset, I.e., if you traded one bitcoin for another, you’d have the exact same thing- a bitcoin. However, assets that are non-fungible cannot be traded as they are one of a kind.  

To make it simple, here are the top 3 things you need to know about NFTs. 

1. It is a digital asset that represents internet collectibles like art, music, games etc. with an authentic certificate created by blockchain technology. 

2. It is unique. It cannot be forged or otherwise manipulated. 

3. It can however be exchanged with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoins on special sites. 

Just like Bitcoins are the digital answer to currency, NFTs are the digital answer to collectibles.   

When did NFTs come into existence? 

Some say it all started in 2017 when an America lab called Larva Labs developed a series of digital characters that can be collected and traded through NFT called CryptoPunks. 

While others say, the history of NFTs started with the man who first created one, Kevin McCoy and began on May 3rd, 2014. He minted his non-fungible token “Quantum,” way before the crypto art market exploded. 

Quantum is a pixelated image of an octagon filled with denoting circles, arcs or other shapes which share the same center, with larger shapes surrounding smaller ones and hypnotically pulsing in fluorescent hues. As of today, the one of a kind “Quantum” art piece is on sale for seven million dollars. 

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So how do NFTs work? 

The majority of NFTs reside on the Ethereum cryptocurrency’s blockchain, a distributed public ledger that records transactions. NFTs are individual tokens with valuable information stored in them. Because they hold a value primarily set by the market and demand, they can be bought and sold just like other physical types of art. NFTs’ unique data makes it easy to verify and validate their ownership and the transfer of tokens between owners. 

There is a possibility of duplication of digital artworks with NFTs, so they are ‘tokenized’ to create a digital certificate of ownership that can be easily bought and sold. 

NFT is created in terms of both tangible and intangible objects such art, GIFs, photos or videos, collectibles, virtual avatars and video game skins, designer clothing or accessories or even music. 

How much are they really worth? 

The worth of NFTs is growing at a high pace. Currently, the average price of an NFT is below $2500, as per the non-Fungible market tracker. However, some of these unique pieces have sold for millions even.  

Since anyone can ‘tokenize’ their work and sell it in the form of NFT, this technology provides a unique opportunity for artists and content creators to monetize their talent.  

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Why NFTs and nothing else? 

Digital is the future. Everything is going digital nowadays which helps NFT by being the biggest hype. Most of the things we do in a digital interface, in the virtual world, in fact, the whole metaverse is the coming reality and the future. NFT is also the best choice because it provides you the ownership of your NFT and it will become better and more secure in future. 

How much does it take to purchase an NFT? 

The cost can be anything, based on the demand of a token, but in most marketplaces, the price of the popular NFTs is about $100 which is approximately 7000-8000 Indian rupees. There are marketplaces like WazirX and Binance where you can buy Ethereum easily then transfer it into your wallet. 

Popular NFT Marketplaces 

Currently, the largest NFT marketplaces are: 

OpenSea.io: The most popular and easy-to-use platform for beginners is where you can find rare digital items and collectibles. All you need to do is just create your account to browse NFT collections and discover new NFT artists. 

Rarible: Similar to ‘Opensea’, this platform is democratic and allows artists and creators to purchase and sell NFTs. The apps issues tokens to enable holders to check more features like fees and community rules. 

Foundation: Here all artists receive ‘upvotes’ or invitations after uploading their art in the form of NFT. The platform aims to build the economy of creators where artists can use the Ethereum blockchain to value work in different ways and build stronger connections.  

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So what’s latest in the world of NFTs 

From the big marketing trends for 2022, NFTs have become exponentially popular.  

One digital piece was sold to a group of NFT collectors for $91.8 million in December 2021 by a digital artist from Pakistan.  

According to the latest news, NFTs already have a market value of $41 billion. 

Big brands like Gucci, McDonald’s, Barbie, Stella Artois, and others are experimenting with NFTs in their marketing strategy in a very fascinating way.  

Social media is also booming with NFTs. Even YouTube has launched new creator tools to expand monetization and also allow creators to sell content as NFTs so fans can “own” videos. 

So, what do you think? Are NFTs a passing fab or are these non-fungible tokens here to stay and take over the world of assets and collectibles?