A double-edged sword? Once-famous brands are getting into crypto

There is nary denying the information that the crypto adoption question sweeping the globe close present has resulted successful a increasing database of defunct brands making their mode into the integer plus marketplace successful caller months. 

Just 2 weeks ago, erstwhile fashionable euphony level LimeWire announced that it is going to beryllium making a comeback, albeit arsenic a marketplace for nonfungible tokens (NFTs) alternatively than a file-sharing service. 

LimeWire’s instrumentality seems to mostly beryllium hinging connected its once-held marque powerfulness backed by the company’s content that its aboriginal 2000’s fame volition let it to marque its mode into the competitory Web3 ecosystem. In its caller iteration, the level volition beryllium posturing arsenic an alternate to fashionable NFT marketplace OpenSea, focusing connected music-related collectibles. 

In this regard, it is worthy mentioning that LimeWire precocious announced a concern with the genitor steadfast down Algorand, portion besides revealing its plans to merchandise its precise ain token LMWR for mainstream commercialized adoption successful the adjacent term.

In fact, the past fewer months person seen a full big of different aged and beloved brands marque comebacks of a akin nature. That said, portion LimeWire’s revival decidedly has a feel-good undertone to it, galore successful the manufacture judge that the determination whitethorn simply beryllium an effort to piggyback connected the file-sharing site’s estimation successful the hopes of a speedy payday. 

Revivals galore

In enactment with what LimeWire is doing, determination person been astatine slightest fractional a twelve different old-school names that person tried to forge a resurgence of a akin nature. For example, WinAmp, a fashionable media subordinate for Microsoft Windows that was sold to AOL successful 1999 for $80 million, is present entering the NFT fray, albeit with overmuch nationalist ridicule.

It is unthinkable however you took decades of bully volition nostalgia and removed it with a azygous tweet.

— Eric Bailey (@ericwbailey) March 16, 2022

Winamp volition auction disconnected its archetypal and iconic tegument arsenic a one-of-one NFT connected OpenSea, with bidding each acceptable to commence mid-May, arsenic portion of the move. The task besides plans connected selling much than 20+ of its fashionable artwork, with each of them being replicated a full of 100 times truthful arsenic to make a full of 1997 NFTs — a motion to the twelvemonth the euphony work entered mainstream circulation. Each of these NFTs comes with a terms tag of 0.08 Ether (ETH), bringing the cumulative full of the 1997 NFTs to astir $527,000 astatine the clip of writing.

Similarly, RadioShack, a large electronics store that went bankrupt a fewer years ago, announced that it volition beryllium re-entering the marketplace erstwhile again arsenic a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange. In its contiguous form, the RadioShack website runs a basal derivative of Uniswap with a radio-based graphic interface, allowing users to swap assorted Ethereum-based tokens including ETH, USD Coin (USDC), Tether (USDT) and Polygon (MATIC), among others.

MoviePass was a task that gained wide notoriety backmost successful 2018 acknowledgment to its offering, successful which subscribers could summation entree to unlimited movie screenings for a paltry sum of conscionable $10. As a effect of its concern model, the institution had to adjacent store conscionable a twelvemonth later. However, and it is present looking to mount a comeback by incorporating blockchain and crypto-enabled technologies into its setup.

What’s successful a marque name?

To summation a amended thought of whether the introduction of these erstwhile prestigious brands into the crypto assemblage is simply a superior proposition oregon conscionable a speedy currency drawback scheme, Cointelegraph spoke to Pavel Bains, CEO of game-fi blockchain ecosystem Bluzelle. He pointed retired that astir of the companies successful question don’t adjacent person their archetypal owners onboard anymore, adding:

“It’s conscionable radical who privation to marque immoderate wealth riding this question and reasoning that utilizing a recognized sanction is the mode to bash it. Where they neglect is that the younker has nary transportation to these brands. I don’t deliberation unrelated brands volition person immoderate interaction arsenic radical volition conscionable motion them disconnected and spell on. Crypto and NFTs are past the constituent of having immoderate bandwagon jumpers deter its image.”

A akin constituent of presumption is shared by Chase Layman, CEO and co-founder of blockchain gaming workplace Attack Wagon, who told Cointelegraph that portion immoderate of these companies whitethorn person agelong word intentions of jumping into the blockchain space, a bulk of them are simply successful it for the speedy media sum and are astir apt to driblet their projects aft making immoderate money.

Elliot Hill, manager of communications for Verasity, a protocol for esports, video amusement and integer contented management, is simply a small little skeptical. He told Cointelegraph that astir brands are organically waking up to the immense opportunities enactment distant by NFTs and different blockchain-based assets. He added:

“In the lawsuit of accepted peer-to-peer companies similar LimeWire entering the space, determination are surely benefits of exploring a blockchain oregon NFT based solution, and this has already been proven to an grade done BitTorrent’s hugely palmy relaunch and token issuance connected the Tron web backmost successful 2019.”

He further opined that blockchain, astatine its core, is simply a decentralized database technology. Therefore, immoderate company, concern oregon enactment which uses centralized databases could conceivably usage them for enhanced security, reporting, traceability and transparency.

Lastly, Piotr Zalewski, CEO of Euronin, a cryptocurrency trading and payments platform, told Cointelegraph that nary forward-looking institution wants to beryllium near behind, particularly those firms that are associated with the euphony sector. “Most firms spot that euphony has conscionable passed its improvement successful income arsenic vinyl, cassettes, CDs, MP3s and present NFTs. I deliberation this is simply a volition to beryllium portion of the aboriginal and not a impermanent hype job.”

The archetypal Winamp skin. Source: Winamp.

Is each publicity bully publicity?

As the saying goes: “all property is bully press.” However, Lyman believes that erstwhile large brands marque a mockery of what existent developers associated with this manufacture are trying to build, it deters and distracts from projects that really person the imaginable to someday alteration the satellite for the better, adding:

“While we request much eyes connected blockchain tech, we besides request much radical to besides instrumentality it seriously. If these large brands would backmost beardown crypto projects alternatively of introducing what looks similar a gimmick, past the content and fervor for blockchain could summation globally.”

In his view, astir of these old-school brands person yet to afloat grasp the possibilities presented by crypto tech and are, therefore, successful it for the abbreviated term. “I don’t spot their efforts helping the legitimacy of the blockchain,” helium said.

Hill, too, is of the presumption that determination are definite types of endorsement that trim the credibility of the crypto manufacture successful the eyes of the public. In this regard, helium pointed to projects that person paid heavy for glitzy personage endorsements solely to increase token sales. That said, helium noted that endeavor adoption is fundamentally antithetic from specified hype-driven cycles, adding:

“We’re seeing existent businesses, with existent customers and clients, follow blockchain oregon cryptocurrency technologies to beforehand their concern needs and amended their processes. There volition beryllium a clip successful the aboriginal erstwhile companies utilizing a blockchain-based solution volition beryllium arsenic commonplace arsenic companies utilizing the internet. It won’t necessitate endorsement due to the fact that it volition beryllium an evident concern request to person immoderate blockchain-based component.”

In Zalewski’s opinion, determination is nary specified happening arsenic “bad publicity oregon adoption,” astatine slightest successful the grander strategy of things. He believes that the errors of unrelated antecedently celebrated companies that bash not cognize the nitty gritty of this abstraction volition assistance signifier the absorption of the marketplace successful the agelong run. “The information remains that the mistakes made by these companies volition let others to larn and truthful alteration faster, much businesslike adoption.”

While determination seems to beryllium a steadfast magnitude of statement regarding the introduction of defunct brands entering the crypto fray, determination is nary crushed to judge that consumers volition instinctively spot a task similar LimeWire 2.0 conscionable due to the fact that it has immoderate humanities prominence attached to its name. Therefore, it volition beryllium absorbing to spot if this inclination continues for overmuch longer and if so, however it impacts the integer plus manufacture astatine large.