NFTs conquered the digital world one day and attracted the attention of millions of people. But almost everything in the world is cyclical and after a wave of hype many people lose interest in such novelties and stop taking them seriously. Therefore, the question of whether non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are still so valuable is still acute nowadays. Today we will explore the concept of hyped NFTs, answer questions about what is NFT market and are NFT still popular.
Understanding the Concept of NFTs
Non-fungible tokens are blockchain-based tokens that entitle the holder to own digital assets. They include artwork, photos, comics, videos, collectibles, audio files, games, and so on. Each of these assets contains unique identification codes that distinguish them from one another and allow tokens to be easily transferred to other users and prove ownership. That helps us to understand NFT market what is it.
The essence of these tokens lies in the word “non-fungible”. This means that two NFT tokens of the same blockchain cannot replace each other, while cryptocurrency tokens of the same blockchain can.
This is the concept of NFT tokens: they not only indicate the uniqueness of a project or item, but also confirm ownership of the digital asset.
What is Non-Fungible Tokens Market
What is a NFT market? NFT markets are platforms where any of us can buy and sell non-fungible tokens. These platforms are varied and designed for different niches. On some of them, buying and selling of assets takes place without intermediaries, on others there is strict moderation and user verification processes. There are platforms for mass trading, where tenders are held in the format of auctions. There are also platforms for specific assets, such as art, music, sports and so on.
What is NFT in crypto market? Non-fungible tokens and cryptocurrencies refer to digital assets. At the same time, it is false to assume that NFT is a cryptocurrency. As stated earlier, the main difference between unique tokens and crypto is that NFTs contain a unique identification code, which proves ownership and the absence of fungibility of assets.
Key Events That Fueled NFT Popularity
What fueled the NFT popularity? There are several key events that have influenced the rise of mass acceptance of the NFT and helped us to define what is an NFT market nowadays:
| Event | Impact on the development of NFTs |
|---|---|
| CryptoPunks | The story of NFT began with this project, when for the first time 10,000 unique collectible 8-bit 24×24 pixel images in the cyberpunk genre, were put up for sale as crypto-art for collecting, rather than as management tokens or assets for staking |
| CryptoKitties | Another boom in the NFT market has occurred thanks to CryptoKitties, a popular game on the Ethereum blockchain. Since 2017, users have been creating, buying, selling and breeding virtual kittens. By buying a crypto kitty (meaning an NFT token) the owner receives an asset that cannot be divided into shares and which contains a unique number, attributes and information about the owner. At the peak of the game’s popularity, the most expensive cryptocat was sold for over a hundred thousand dollars |
| Auction of Artist Beeple’s Works | Christie’s auction house held its first-ever sale of NFT works, which included digital artworks by artist Beeple. “Everyday Life: The First 5,000 Days” was the title of the work, which was sold for more than a half million dollars, bringing special attention to the work’s author and demonstrating the potential value of digital art and the prospects for what is the NFT market called |
These events were successful and allowed the NFT project to gain popularity. So much so that NFT became the word of the year 2021 according to the Collins dictionary. But what about the current situation? Are NFTs still popular? Or is the NFT market dead?
A couple of years ago, the hype around the NFT subsided. However, this does not mean that the NFT bubble will burst anytime soon. There is a possibility that such behavior of the market may simply mean its correction period and precede a new wave of the projects’ popularity.
The Future of NFTs
Are NFTs dead for the future? The experts give no specific answer on whether is NFT market dead, but forecasts tell us that the expansion of this sector is actively ongoing and is not standing still.
It’s hard to say that the NFT market is dead now. In addition to keeping the project up to date, developers are working on technological improvements that will likely provide us with faster transaction speed in the future, environmentally friendly solutions and better user interfaces.
There will be no shortage of updates to NFT market legal standards and guidelines. It is very likely that users will be able to have full support from governing bodies for tokenization, property rights and intellectual property protection in the NFT space.
