#58 | European Union Forces Apple To Support NFTs

Estimated Read Time: 8 minutes

Hey friends,

Ho Ho Ho and a Merry Metaverse Christmas to you on this special edition. Today we start off with some hard-hitting NFT news from Apple and Mercedes, before finishing off with some wholesome NFT Christmas stories. Let's jump into it!

European Union Forcing Apple's Hand In Supporting NFTs

Apple needs no introduction —— there's a high chance you're reading this on one of their devices! Let's give a little bit of context on their stance in Web3 and NFTs: their recent NFT App Store restrictions in October applied a 30% commission fee for any NFT transactions on their platform. This greedy move from Apple is not surprising considering their in-app transactions generated over $85 billion in revenue last year, but it quickly crushed the growth of NFT use on iOS. This new App Store-enforced tax instantly forced NFT platforms like Solana's largest marketplace Magic Eden to withdraw from the App Store, as the added 30% commission rates were unsustainable for the NFT ecosystem which had previously seen around 2-5% fees for users.

Fortunately, in a separate turn of events, the European Union is implementing a new EU Digital Markets Act to prevent digital platforms from acting as “gatekeepers” for online markets. This is a significant milestone for people of the European Union who will now have access to 3rd-party app stores on Apple, negating the enforcement of App Store fees, and opening the floodgates for NFT traders and developers. This new act goes into effect from May 2023, but unfortunately only pertains to the European Union. However, this pioneering action may lead to other jurisdictions implementing similar acts in an effort to combat the control a company like Apple has over emerging technologies.

All and all, it's hard to comprehend the vast amount of people who could be onboarded to Web3 through unhampered access to apps that use the benefits of NFT technology. If this becomes a trend for the rest of the world, it may not be long to see NFTs commonplace with the floodgates opened on Apple's 1.8 billion actively used devices. What a bullish future!

Mercedes Joins Web3 With NFTs For Virtual Goods

It seems like the automobile industry is really stepping into Web3, perhaps because of the larger margins afforded by relatively high-end luxury goods and also because of AR/VR overlap that could play into their metaverse plans as well. Just last edition we talked about Aston Martin's virtual cars, and the week before that saw Porsche & BMW's NFT plans. Now, another titan has joined the fray: Mercedes has been forced to step up its Web3 game through some new NFT trademark applications.

Mercedes-Benz is the world's most valuable luxury car brand and another household name that is looking to evolve its business through a transition to Web3. According to trademark attorney Mike Kondoudis, Mercedes has pretty exciting plans to offer NFTs through virtual vehicles, vehicle parts, collectibles, clothing, footwear, furniture and even home appliances all in the digital world. This metaverse-orientated application is not only limited to NFTs, with additional plans for crypto trading and financial services.

Despite maybe being late to the game with trademarks compared to other automotive brands, this isn't Mercede’s first foray into NFTs. Earlier this year, they partnered with ART2PEOPLE where talented artists created exclusive one-off digital artworks of the G-Wagon. Mercedes' F1 Team (who won seven of the last nine F1 championships) also paired up with a sponsor who we shall not mention for free-to-claim “Ticket Stubs” to reward and engage their fans. It seems these tests were deemed successful for the $154 billion revenue company, which with these new NFT trademarks is set to further Web3 adoption and NFT utilization.

Although constant coverage of Web3 automotive news may not be the most exciting, it's important to keep in mind the significance of these traditional legacy brands; we are talking about some of the biggest companies in the world with some of the largest communities and globally recognised pieces of Intellectual Property, whose actions will impact millions and set an opportunistic and progressive precedent for the entire world's transition to Web3.

Merry Metaverse Christmas

With a jolly Christmas only a few days away, let's get in the festive spirit with some recent Metaverse news. Global media powerhouse Forbes has just announced a partnership with one of the leading metaverse platforms The Sandbox for Christmas at Forbes Hub. The influential publisher is furthering their commitment to Web3 through a festive metaverse quest complete with Christmas gifts and special surprises such as a 50,000 $SAND prize pool, Forbes subscriptions, and 400 Forbes VIP Balloon NFTs.

Moreover, leaning towards a Forbes virtual hub than a Christmas celebration, the Sandbox will be home to virtual wearables, educational events, quests on the magazine's past, history on the founder Malcolm Forbes, NFT galleries, as well as general areas for people to socialise and interact during this special time of the year.

The other leading Web3 Metaverse Decentraland also has festivities lined up with their first-ever Creators Holiday Event. This event will feature a line-up of creators from in and outside the Decentraland ecosystem that will have Crystal City in high spirits. This virtual world will see music from DJs, unique wearables, NFT art galleries, and interactive environments for attendees to immersive themselves in while rubbing shoulders with some of their favorite creators.

Although these Metaverses are fundamentally built on NFTs, let's round off this festive section with a more directly related NFT Christmas story that's giving us another use-case for our NFT bingo card. There's probably a good chance you don't still have all the Christmas cards you've ever received, but what if they were digitalized and locked on the blockchain forever?

Well, that's what IOTA network exchange Iotabee is enabling through their new Christmas holiday postcard feature that lets you create customized NFT cards you can send directly to loved ones this season. Try it out!

From everyone at Morning NFTea we wish you a wonderful time for this upcoming Christmas, enjoy the time with friends and family and we will see you soon with the next curation of NFT news, take care!

What's the NFTea?

Christmas Day also marks the start of Yuga Labs' newest Bored Ape Yacht Club/ Mutant Ape Yacht Club activation, the Trial of Jimmy the Monkey. As with all Yuga announcements, their teaser involving mechanics of how BAYC/MAYCs will be paired with Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC) for different tiered rewards caused a sharp pump in BAKC prices.

The short film that they dropped has also gained a multitude of views, with their on-brand sense of (literal) potty humor.

The Trial involves a series of mints that will kick off events over the course of 2023. Seems like it will be a mysterious, speculative and entertaining year for the Yacht Club... whether you've aped in or not, it'll be a fun ride!

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DISCLAIMER:

None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.