Guess Who's Jaded, Token-gated, and Pixelated?

Hi. It’s Dana. Welcome to the Web 2.5 newsletter featuring news, content, musings, and memes at the intersection of Web 2.0 and Web 3.0. I'm here with some exciting announcements this week:

1. We have a logo! Reply and let me know what you think (both about the logo + also how you're enjoying these newsletters).

2. We moved our publishing platform from Substack to Beehiiv which really doesn't matter except that...

3. We started sending the newsletter from a new email address: [email protected]. If you notice any deliverability issues, let me know. Thank you so much.

And now, on to the week in Web 2.5!

🍝 Top 5 Stories of the Week

#1: Kim Kardashian is Fined by the SEC

Kim Kardashian was fined $1.26 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission for failing to disclose her compensation on an Instagram post that promoted EthereumMax, a crypto asset. 

Her use of "#ad" and "this is not financial advice" wasn't enough to comply with SEC laws, which per SEC Chair Gary Gensler, state that celebrities and influencers must "disclose to the public when and how much they are paid to promote investing in securities." 

Why it matters? Felix Salmon's piece in Axios does a nice job explaining the nuance. He writes, "It's fine for celebrities and influencers to endorse investment opportunities, including crypto investments. Where Kardashian crossed the line was when she endorsed a crypto asset security." Salmon notes, "If you're endorsing a company, the only rules that apply are the relatively lax ones from the FTC. If you're shilling a security, then disclosing that you were paid — as Kardashian did with an #AD hashtag — is not enough; you also need to disclose how much you were paid. The bottom line: If you're going to tout crypto, tout a crypto company, not a coin." Words to remember, for sure.

#2 Warner Music Group Partners with OpenSea

Warner Music Group (WMG) and OpenSea have partnered to create a platform for WMG artists to expand their presence and fanbase into web3. The partnership enables WMG artists to get early access to newly rolled-out features on OpenSea, launch their NFT collections and projects on customizable and dedicated drop pages, and gain access to improved discoverability features on the NFT marketplace. The partnership will also give artists access to OpenSea's safety and security tools as well as specialized customer service support to onboard existing fans as well as drive new customer growth. 

Per Decrypt, the first NFT collection to come out of the partnership will come from Warner Records in collaboration with celebrity chef Jeremy Fall’s web3 startup, Probably Nothing.

Why it matters? Traditional tactics from marketplaces to attract and retain top creators are alive and well in web3. The leading marketplaces will continue to work feverishly to build a moat for themselves, and we'll continue to see these types of partnerships and investments to ensure the top marketplaces continue to win over the top creators.

#3 VeeFriends Launches Collectible Characters with Macy's and Toys"R"Us

VeeFriends has partnered with Macy's and Toys"R"Us to launch a limited series of vinyl figurines and plush collectible characters. The collectibles will come with a printed QR code that leads the owner to a short film or song sharing the story of each character.

VeeFriends CEO and Founder Gary Vaynerchuk's hand-drawn characters, which started as digital NFTs, have gone on to accumulate more than $300 million worth of trading volume. Andy Krainak, VeeFriends President, has told the public to expect more storytelling features such as books, video games, and other formats. 

Why it matters? The top web3 NFT IP franchises are not going to live only on the blockchain. They will live in all the traditional web2 spaces we know and love, including in media/content, on merchandise, and even in the toy aisle. 

#4 DALL-E 2 is now Open for All

The OpenAi image-making machine, DALL-E 2, is now available to everyone. The company dropped their waitlist after expanding the feature set and integrating better security measures. The DALL-E algorithm works by creating photorealistic images based on a text prompt. DALL-E 2 is already generating over 2 million images per day (by comparison, platforms such as Shutterstock and Getty have catalogs of 80 and 415 million images respectively). 

Why it matters? Increased audiences using these AI tools will enable greater scale for platforms, and help find the right and best use cases for the technology. One to watch —will overpriced agency photoshoots get disrupted by the technology? Marketing budgets might hope so :)

#5 Paris Fashion Week Goes Web3

It was a very busy week in Paris for web3.

POAP.fr Studio and Christian Louboutin created multiple NFT POAPs for the Loubi Show II during Paris Fashion Week. Those who attended the day, night, and online virtual shows were gifted complimentary POAPs distributed via QR codes on flyers and NFC tags. A POAP, which stands for a Proof of Attendance Protocol, is an NFT that signifies one's presence at an exclusive event. POAPs are unforgeable (ha not unforgettable, but unforgeable), unable to be copied, and a unique digital collectible. 

Loewe presented Minecraft-style, pixelated garments at their show during Paris Fashion Week. Designers used the trompe l'oeil, or "trick of the eye," effect to create hoodies, t-shirts, and pants that look as if they are glitching mid-walk. 

Why it matters? The more web3 technology gets out of the tech world and into culture, music, and fashion, the more adoption we'll see.

🥣 Other News and Nuggets

The White House has released a blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights that is intended to "safeguard digital and civil rights in an AI-fueled world." The system, which has five key pillars, is intended to "guide the design, use, and deployment of automated systems to protect the American public in the age of artificial intelligence."

Meta announced that all users on Facebook and Instagram in the US can now connect their wallets and share their NFTs. Users will also be able to tag both creators and collectors — plus share NFTs between both platforms. The new feature supports NFTs from the Ethereum, Flow, and Polygon blockchains, with Solana support coming in the near future. 

Bruce Willis denies selling his rights to Deepcake, a deepfake studio, after being named "the first Hollywood star to sell his right to allow a 'digital twin' of himself to be created for use on screen." Deepcake has clarified that they do not own the rights over the 'digital twins' that they create, and the use of the product is at the discretion of the owner. 

Bud Light has partnered with Vayner3 to create a new NFT collection, Bud Light x NFL Ultimate Fandom - Survivor Pick 'Em 2022, that replicates its limited-edition NFL packaging. Owners of the digital collectibles will have token-gated chalk talk with Greg Olsen and team-specific utility, such as video calls with the front office or private stadium tours. Fans and buyers can also enter the Survivor Pick 'em tournament, which is an NFT-powered contest in which fans compete for a variety of prizes. 

Telefónica has enabled cryptocurrency payments through Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, USD Coin, and others on its virtual marketplace, Tu. The company has also released an NFT marketplace that is integrated with MetaMask. Telefónica has collaborated with Qualcomm Technologies to grow their extended reality ecosystem, and provide innovative services for their users. 

Sega has collaborated with Double Jump Tokyo to create its first blockchain game, which will be based on the Sangokushi Taisen franchise. The Sangokushi Taisen franchise produces games that implement the tokenization of assets, and the ability to buy and trade virtual cards. 

Kith Friends, a collaborative project between Kith and web3 community Invisible Friends, has partnerd with BMW to create a collection of NFT clothing and accessories. Kith Friends owners had early access to the collection through a token-gated website. 

🥨 Headlines to Skim and Scan

🔢 By the Numbers

• NFTs Ballooned to a $41 Billion Market in 2021 and are Catching Up to the Total Size of the Global Fine Art Market. Markets Insider.

• Despite the Crypto Market Downturn, DAO Treasuries Grew by $700 Million Since January. Bitcoin.com.

• Solana NFT Ecosystem's September Growth Rivals Ethereum. Blockworks.

🧠 Deep Thoughts & Hot Takes

• Chief Metaverse Officers Are Getting Million-Dollar Paydays. So What Do They Do All Day? Bloomberg.

• The Battle for the Soul of the Web. The Atlantic.

• Can Starbucks Bring Web3 Into the Mainstream? CoinDesk.

• Apple CEO Tim Cook predicts AR will have 'profound' impact, downplays metaverse. MarketWatch.

• Finding the On-Ramp: Converting Web2 to Web3. VentureBeat.

• What is Necessary for Web3 to Fully Replace Web2? Cointelegraph.

• NFT Space Bridges Passions for Tennis Legend Maria Sharapova. Cointelegraph.

• Meet The Artist Who Just Launched Christie’s New Platform For NFT Sales. Forbes.

💯 Everything is Great

• 'I'm a Crypto Guy': Why Steve Aoki Believes in Web3. CoinDesk.

• How Web3 Music Platform Audius Hit 7.5 Million Monthly Users. Decrypt.

• Crypto Gaming Will 'Bring 100 Million People Into Web3': Framework Ventures Co-Founder. Decrypt.

• Web3 is the Solution to Uber's Problem with Hackers. Cointelegraph.

• Music NFTs a Powerful Tool to Transform an Audience Into a Community. Cointelegraph.

• Japan to Invest in Metaverse and NFT Expansion. Coindesk.

• Gucci names Robert Triefus CEO of Gucci Vault and Metaverse Ventures. Vogue Business.

• Bain & Company and Prysm Group Announce Collaboration to Expand Corporate Learning on web3 and Emerging Technologies. PR Newswire.

⛔ Everything is Terrible

• NFT Artist Beeple Warns Discord Members of Wallet Drainer Exploit. Decrypt.

• The Daily Show Just Said the Bored Ape Were Dead. Twitter.

💰 Money Bags: Fundraising News

• Uniswap Labs Eyes Over $100 Million In New Funding. TechCrunch.

• Horizon Raises $40M to Make Web3 Easy, Fun, and Powerful for Users and Builders. Medium.

• A16z Leads $40M Funding for Web3 Data Protocol Golden. CoinDesk.

• Web3 Banking Platform Juno raises $18 Million, Launches Tokenized Loyalty Program. TechCrunch.

🖼️ Drops, Flops, and What's Hot in the Depths of web3 

• Guy Sweeps 165 Renga NFTs, Borrowing 600 ETH against 7 Apes. WTF? NFT Evening.

• Moonbirds DAO to Launch With $2.6M in Ethereum and NFTs From Kevin Rose’s Proof. Decrypt.

• OpenSea to Allow Users to Submit Bulk NFT Listings and Purchases. Cointelegraph.

💀 And Finally

Leave it to The Onion...

And that’s a wrap! See you out there in the interweb3s.

DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is strictly educational. None of this is financial or investment advice — and not a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please always Christian DYOR (Do Your Own Research)