Amazon Steps Up In Web3?
Mark Kennedy & Manuel Olumorin
January 27, 2023
GM. Lootbox here, the newsletter that delivers potions to amp your defence as you navigate the crypto jungle.
- Juggernaut alert, Amazon making moves in web3
- Sales on NFT collection may be refundable
- The Sneakies
Amazon Steps Up Its Web3 Game
Rumour has it...
Amazon plans to make big moves in the NFT space.
Whaaattt?
Yes. Blockworks apparently got their hands on the news through sources inside Amazon.
What we know about this
- Amazon had plans in the works to do at least one NFT drop with an artist, but it seems their blueprint has evolved.
- To what? We are unsure, but an NFT marketplace could be on the cards. Right now, the details are very thin. What has been revealed is that the platform would include NFT gaming initiatives.
- Although the platform may not compete directly with well-known NFT marketplaces like OpenSea, they should be quaking in their boots if this has a successful launch.
- Amazon's customers would be able to play crypto games and claim free NFTs in the process.
- Sources claim the platform would run out of Amazon rather than AWS, who we know has been recruiting Web3 roles.
- An official announcement could be as early as April 2023.
Why this could be a game changer
Amazon Prime has 220 million users as of 2022. And the great thing about these users is they've got the moula. For developers and creators, this means a whole new world of opportunities to reach a user base that is open to spending on their wares.
If Amazon takes a similar approach to Netflix by adding games to Prime Video, it would be interesting to see if the games would be NFT games.
Amazon's history with web3
This is not Amazon's first rodeo in web3. They have been taking positions in L1/L2s, NFTs and many other projects. Here are the other notable things they have done:
- In 2019, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the launch of the Amazon Managed Blockchain service, which allowed customers to easily create and manage scalable blockchain networks using popular open-source frameworks like Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric.
- In 2020, AWS announced the launch of the AWS Blockchain Templates, which make it easy for customers to create and deploy blockchain networks on the Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric platforms.
- In 2020, AWS announced its partnership with Kaleido, a blockchain platform provider, to help customers build and scale their blockchain solutions.
- In 2021, AWS announced its partnership with ConsenSys, a blockchain software company, to provide customers with more robust blockchain solutions and services.
- In 2023, AWS and AVX blockchain partner to make it easier for developers to launch and manage nodes on the Avalanche blockchain, as AWS will support Avalanche’s infrastructure and decentralized applications (dapps).
Refund Request On NFTs Collections
Earlier this week, iconic car manufacturer, Porsche, launched an NFT collection that absolutely bombed.
An eagle-eyed individual found something interesting while revisiting the website. The Terms of Service (you know, that thing we all agree to, but never read).
Here's what they found
If you bought the Porsche NFT, you waived your Right of Withdrawal.
What is this "Right of Withdrawal" thing?
- It's a law set up by the European Union in 1997.
- It gives the consumer the right to withdraw from a contract (in other words, transaction) within 14 days of completion.
- It affects both physical and digital products as long as they are purchased without being there in person.
- The 14-day period can be waived for digital products if the customer is made aware.
Why care
That's the question here.
If Porsche's army of lawyers thought this little clause was necessary enough to stick a waiver for buyers of the NFT to agree to, we should be thinking about it too.
In Porsche's case, without the waiver, a buyer would have been able to request a refund after finding out that the secondary market value tanked within the 14-day period.
Here's the kicker
If a company does not inform the customer about their right of withdrawal (EU and UK), the customer has a full year to request a refund 🤯.
This makes one wonder if there may have been an oversight by many NFT projects, and some people are starting to make refund requests.
Take this example, @darkp0rt, who is trying to get a refund for Yuga's Otherdeed.
I decided to e-mail @yugalabs and ask them for a refund on my Otherdeed NFT, which I believe is my statutory right under UK law.
They replied! 👇
And of course, I asked ChatGPT to write the e-mail for me 😉 twitter.com/darkp0rt/statu…
— Paul | Top Dog Studios (@darkp0rt)
Jan 26, 2023
Now, if this goes through, it would set a precedent that other judges would most likely follow.
Our take
This feels against the web3 ethos, but it's got to happen. Bringing in the majority into web3 requires things like this. You know, laws = clarity.
In the meantime, we should emulate Porsche.
DEX is safe CEX. Right of Withdrawal waiver is safe NFT sales.
The Sneakies
- Shibarium, a Layer 2 solution for Shiba Inu, is getting traction before it goes live. One of the projects is PawZone which plans to launch the PAW token on Shibarium.
- Emergent Games has chosen ImmutableX for Resurgence, a web3 massively multiplayer online roleplaying game.
- Mythical Games acquires DMarket blockchain gaming marketplace.
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