Mark Cuban, Yuga Labs, DeadFellaz, and Fvckrender, among others, have become prominent voices expressing concern over the discontinuation of OpenSea’s royalty tool, sparking controversy and debate over potential restrictions and even boycotts.
OpenSeas The choice to discontinue mandatory maker royalties – typically ranging from 2.5% to 10% on secondary NFT sales – provoked a substantial backlash. Disabling the ‘Operator Filter’ tool will affect many NFT projects that rely heavily on royalty commissions as a profit injection.
Dismay from industry insiders
Renowned technology figure and OpenSea investor, Mark Cuban, expressed disappointment that the marketplace was discontinuing its Operator Filter, stating that OpenSea’s decision to stop collecting and distributing NFT royalties was “a MAJOR mistake”. Moreover, he claimed that this move weakens trust in the platform and negatively affects the entire NFT realm.
Failure to collect and pay royalties on NFT sales is a HUGE mistake of @open sea. It reduced confidence in the platform and harms the industry. And I say this as one @open sea investor @Devin Finzer
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) August 18, 2023
Cuban has a long standing profile and involvement in the crypto sector. In addition, he previously participated in a major funding round for OpenSea, so his statements matter.
The masterminds behind Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks, Yuga Labs, similarly scolded OpenSea’s policy change. Following the policy change, Yuga Labs will halt its NFT projects from the market as of February 2024 – a huge loss for OpenSea, given that Yuga’s NFT collections have accumulated more than $9 billion in the wider NFT market.
On @open sea‘s decision to discontinue their operator filter. pic.twitter.com/ahc155WWkX
— Yugalabs (@yugalabs) August 18, 2023
The founder of the NFT project DeadFellaz, Betty, supports Yuga’s decision, saying: “Hollywood is protesting for royalties, while supposedly progressive web3 companies like OpenSea that fix web2 problems backslide and become part of the problem themselves. The result? The creators who gave them their profit are turning their backs.” In addition, she calls for a boycott of the collaborative sector against the secondary marketplace.
So we are boycotting @open sea Than? If it doesn’t align with creators’ incentives, creators should move their businesses to places that do.
— BETTY (@betty_nft) August 18, 2023
In the midst of these reactions, the digital artist Fvckrender replied: “If we stop using OpenSea, we sink, they sink”. The controversy surrounding OpenSea’s policy change is still ongoing. However, the end of OpenSea’s royalty enforcement utility demonstrates the importance of not just commissions, but also creator support, sustainability, and community unity in the dynamic NFT realm.
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*All NFT Plazas investment/financial opinions are derived from the personal research and experience of our site moderators and are intended as educational material only. Individuals are required to fully research each product before making any kind of investment.