Published on: 28/10/2022

NFT industry must change to real-world benefits, says gaming platform exec

OnChain Studios CEO Will Weinraub said on the Tech vs Media podcast that instead of simply saying how great NFTs are, the NFT industry must convert its hype into real-world benefits in order to succeed.

“We need to keep it as underlying technology, and really talk more about the benefits and the use cases and the avenues that these things open up versus just shouting into the echo chamber about how great NFTs are,” Weinraub said

He claimed that after their initial excitement, NFTs began to have a negative perception. “Consumers aren’t going to care unless you translate technology into real-world use cases that solve their problems or delight them in a number of ways,” he said.

Weinraub said that a slew of NFT and web3 companies make mistakes by failing to provide solutions to real issues and instead “throwing the words ‘NFT’ and ‘blockchain’ at these companies and hoping that’s enough to get this done.”

“Some deals were able to get done by just the sheer momentum of the hype,” Weinraub said. “But now it’s what is the use case? What is the application? What is the value?”

Weinraub projected that 95 percent of NFT projects would then “fade away over time” due to a lack of follow-through, adding that “we’re already starting to see a lack of liquidity and activity around those projects.”

According to him, the next generation of NFTs chiefs will take their place, as startups work on multi-year projects.

“Now for a while you’ve seen these cycles come and go, you see what happened in the late 90s, and the whole mobile boom, and the app boom, and then all this different stuff,” Weinraub said.

“We see these markets, and we see them as opportunities to build and get ready for the next wave of innovation and consumer adoption.”

Tech vs Media podcast

TheWrap’s Tech vs Media podcast is hosted by Richard Wolpert, who has years of experience in media and technology as an executive, tech company founding father, venture capitalist and philanthropist.

Distinguished guests who come to the podcast provide illuminating lessons and a different view on the movers, creators, disruptors, and innovations shaping the future of media and technology, as well as how such businesses will intersect.

In episode 4, Wolpert sat down with Weinraub to discuss things including the story of his first Bitcoin purchase in 2014, which he considered “homework” for his company, Live Ninja, at the time. He also explained how CryptoKitties sparked his interest in NFTs and digital collectibles in 2008.

Weinraub lauded NBA Top Shot for being the first big licensing partnership with a global brand to introduce them into the web3 space, which made waves in the digital collectibles space. He explained NFTs in layman’s terms, saying that they “make the internet ownable.”

In the 55:50 minute episode, Weinraub also compared NFTs to trading cards and mentioned the possibility of iconic trade companies reopening in the digital sphere.

Weinraub put his aspiration into action via his firm OnChain Studios and Cryptoys, an innovative toy company that integrates digital collectibles into the world of toys.

Cryptoys, unlike other toy companies, have the infrastructure to generate original digital content in the form of apps and games that broaden the narrative beyond a physical object.