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Q&As on Fan Bits with Rare Bits CEO Dave Pekar
Rare Bits posted 9 months ago
Zach Segal
1) What's your business model? Can you elaborate on how creators can earn crypto from secondary trading?
2) What's your favorite three collectibles for sale?
2) What's your favorite three collectibles for sale?
D. Dickerson
Right now it looks like Fan Bits focuses on digital art. Do you see Fan Bits expanding to other types of collectibles? And what might that look like?
Dave Pekar
Hey @dickerson_des - thanks for the question!
You are correct that right now there are a lot of cool crypto-related digital art pieces on Fan Bits. That is because 1) the art looks awesome 2) artists need support in order to continue to bring their work into the world and 3) a lot of people already collect art and understand why you would.
But, in the future, we expect collectibles to play a role in a lot more types of digital communities. How cool would it be to own a collectible from a Twitch streamer you love or a band you are a huge fan of? We view crypto-collectibles as a new kind of digital memorabilia that helps brings fans closer to the creative people they admire.
Taking the examples above, the collectible for the Twitch streamer might reference an inside joke in that streamer's community. For the band, the collectible might be proof of attendance of one of the band's shows!
You are correct that right now there are a lot of cool crypto-related digital art pieces on Fan Bits. That is because 1) the art looks awesome 2) artists need support in order to continue to bring their work into the world and 3) a lot of people already collect art and understand why you would.
But, in the future, we expect collectibles to play a role in a lot more types of digital communities. How cool would it be to own a collectible from a Twitch streamer you love or a band you are a huge fan of? We view crypto-collectibles as a new kind of digital memorabilia that helps brings fans closer to the creative people they admire.
Taking the examples above, the collectible for the Twitch streamer might reference an inside joke in that streamer's community. For the band, the collectible might be proof of attendance of one of the band's shows!
StoreOfValue Blog
What do you guys think is the future of blockchain-based digital assets/collectibles, what does that future look like?
Dave Pekar
Hey @SovCryptoBlog - boy, big question!
I think the following things are in our future:
- several hit blockchain based games hit
- digital assets become important vanity/collector items in several purely digital communities
- triple A game studios start moving some of their digital economies to the blockchain
- huge IP and brands start selling digital assets as part of their merchandising pushes
- blockchain based assets are the medium of trade for valuable, real world collector's items
Now, the order those things will happen and the dates I'm not so sure about ;)
I think the following things are in our future:
- several hit blockchain based games hit
- digital assets become important vanity/collector items in several purely digital communities
- triple A game studios start moving some of their digital economies to the blockchain
- huge IP and brands start selling digital assets as part of their merchandising pushes
- blockchain based assets are the medium of trade for valuable, real world collector's items
Now, the order those things will happen and the dates I'm not so sure about ;)
Dave Pekar
Hey @jinglanW - I'm not sure I totally understand the question...
But don't forget about Rare Bits, which is our no fees marketplace for blockchain based digital goods :)
rarebits.io
But don't forget about Rare Bits, which is our no fees marketplace for blockchain based digital goods :)
rarebits.io
Soona Amhaz
What's the story behind launching Fan Bits? What does Fan Bits look like 5-10 years out?
Dave Pekar
Hey @soonaorlater - thanks for the question. Just noticed your great handle too... :P
Here's the bullet point story behind Fan Bits:
- Our core team has been building apps centered around digital goods for our whole careers.
- We saw the work around 721 and realized digital goods would never be the same.
- We launched Rare Bits because there needed to be a marketplace and cross-app visualization layer for this new type of asset.
- We realized in order for the ecosystem & our marketplace to grow, there needs to be better content that already resonates with people.
- We built Fan Bits to bring that content to the forefront of the ecosystem 🎉
5-10 years is a long time for an industry moving this fast, but we hope that in 10 years digital goods will be destigmatized, people are able to express their digital identities via their digital collections, and creators & brands of all types understand blockchain based digital goods are an awesome way to engage with their fans.
Here's the bullet point story behind Fan Bits:
- Our core team has been building apps centered around digital goods for our whole careers.
- We saw the work around 721 and realized digital goods would never be the same.
- We launched Rare Bits because there needed to be a marketplace and cross-app visualization layer for this new type of asset.
- We realized in order for the ecosystem & our marketplace to grow, there needs to be better content that already resonates with people.
- We built Fan Bits to bring that content to the forefront of the ecosystem 🎉
5-10 years is a long time for an industry moving this fast, but we hope that in 10 years digital goods will be destigmatized, people are able to express their digital identities via their digital collections, and creators & brands of all types understand blockchain based digital goods are an awesome way to engage with their fans.
Dave Pekar
Hey @eriktorenberg - great question :)
I think what gets continuously misunderstood about the whole space is the value of digital goods. Ever since digital goods were invented people have been labeling them as worthless or not of any "real" value. Even after digital goods have become a many $10Bs market, a lot of peole still don't intuitively understand how something digital can have any real value.
But, in fact, the value people get out of their possessions isn't purely due to their use value. Buying, having, arranging, collecting things is part of our identity as individuals and plays a big role in how we fit into our society. As our lives become more and more oriented around digital experiences, I think our digital possessions will play just as important role in shaping our identity as our physical possession.
I think a lot of people will be very surprised how much people will care about this new brand of digital goods...
I think what gets continuously misunderstood about the whole space is the value of digital goods. Ever since digital goods were invented people have been labeling them as worthless or not of any "real" value. Even after digital goods have become a many $10Bs market, a lot of peole still don't intuitively understand how something digital can have any real value.
But, in fact, the value people get out of their possessions isn't purely due to their use value. Buying, having, arranging, collecting things is part of our identity as individuals and plays a big role in how we fit into our society. As our lives become more and more oriented around digital experiences, I think our digital possessions will play just as important role in shaping our identity as our physical possession.
I think a lot of people will be very surprised how much people will care about this new brand of digital goods...
Dave Pekar
Hey @dstuecken - thanks for asking :)
As a technologist, I've followed crypto from afar for many years now. But, when I saw the work that was being done around NFT midway through 2017, I knew I had to get involved professionally.
I've been building businesses centered around digital goods for the past 10 years, starting with Facebook apps, working on FarmVille back in 2009. I think the blockchain is going have a huge impact on gaming and other digital entertainment because goods that live on the blockchain are fundamentally better for consumers!
Gone are the days where the developer holds absolute power over the goods which you supposedly bought for them.
Blockchain technology obviously is an incredibly general purpose technology but I'm working on it because of what it affords consumer in my little corner of the internet :)
As a technologist, I've followed crypto from afar for many years now. But, when I saw the work that was being done around NFT midway through 2017, I knew I had to get involved professionally.
I've been building businesses centered around digital goods for the past 10 years, starting with Facebook apps, working on FarmVille back in 2009. I think the blockchain is going have a huge impact on gaming and other digital entertainment because goods that live on the blockchain are fundamentally better for consumers!
Gone are the days where the developer holds absolute power over the goods which you supposedly bought for them.
Blockchain technology obviously is an incredibly general purpose technology but I'm working on it because of what it affords consumer in my little corner of the internet :)
James Hinck
At the token summit panel, you mentioned using collectibles and other digital assets to reach pre-existing digital audiences and grow the overall ecosystem. How feasible do you see this being today, given the steps needed to get Metamask, ETH etc. and how does your team think about making this transition to blockchain even easier?
Dave Pekar
@James-Hinck - awesome question! Hope you enjoyed the panel :)
I totally take your point - this is a challenge given the current frictions around getting into crypto. But I think it is feasible if you choose the right audiences. We are definitely going after audiences that are tech savvy and ideally "crypto-adjacent." I think if you have content which is appealing to folks from that segment the onboarding hurdles can be overcome.
But indeed, the on-rails to crypto are a critical piece of infrastructure that needs to be solved for the whole ecosystem to grow. We definitely have some ideas we're going to play around with here, but we are also hopefully intrepid entrepreneurs from the rest of the ecosystem will chip in as well :)
I totally take your point - this is a challenge given the current frictions around getting into crypto. But I think it is feasible if you choose the right audiences. We are definitely going after audiences that are tech savvy and ideally "crypto-adjacent." I think if you have content which is appealing to folks from that segment the onboarding hurdles can be overcome.
But indeed, the on-rails to crypto are a critical piece of infrastructure that needs to be solved for the whole ecosystem to grow. We definitely have some ideas we're going to play around with here, but we are also hopefully intrepid entrepreneurs from the rest of the ecosystem will chip in as well :)
Benton C Bainbridge
Congrats on Fan Bits - I especially love that you've implemented Droit de Suite!
Could Fan Bits artworks be exhibited outside of our browsers and phones, for example on a "digital canvas" like Meural? If so, could creators or collectors choose to hide the work from display in the Fan Bits collection while it's being shown on a wall or in a museum?
Could Fan Bits artworks be exhibited outside of our browsers and phones, for example on a "digital canvas" like Meural? If so, could creators or collectors choose to hide the work from display in the Fan Bits collection while it's being shown on a wall or in a museum?
Dave Pekar
Hey @bentoncbainbrid - love the ideas!
We think one of the best aspects of crypto-assets is their portability. Just like regular goods you own, you can take them where you want and do what you want with them. We would love to be able to power the types of experiences and make these items more meaningful to people's lives. Bringing them to a digital canvas would a really cool version of that.
There are a lot of details to be worked out (as you refer to re: hiding the work when it's being displayed somewhere officially) but as product people/technologist we love solving those sorts of problems :) It's all about finding the rights partners...
We think one of the best aspects of crypto-assets is their portability. Just like regular goods you own, you can take them where you want and do what you want with them. We would love to be able to power the types of experiences and make these items more meaningful to people's lives. Bringing them to a digital canvas would a really cool version of that.
There are a lot of details to be worked out (as you refer to re: hiding the work when it's being displayed somewhere officially) but as product people/technologist we love solving those sorts of problems :) It's all about finding the rights partners...
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re: our business model -
We take a percentage of the revenue generated from the sale of collectibles on Fan Bits.
re: secondary trading
When assets are traded on Fan Bits outside of the primary sales, a portion of the revenue goes to the creator of the asset. We built this into the system because we're trying to create an ecosystem where creators can thrive and this is been a big source of pain for creators, especially in the art community, in the past. Without this in place, there is the chance for speculators to get outsized gains without the creator being properly compensated.
re: my fave collectibles
There is so much awesome art on the site right now...
- All of the stuff from Man With No Name is totally gorgeous
https://fanbits.com/creator/ManWithNoName
(make sure to click through to see the lightbox version of his stuff)
-I find Kevsudo's style to be extremely charming
https://fanbits.com/creator/kevsudo
-The Dave Collectible isn't so bad either :P
https://fanbits.com/collectible/rarebits/119