I am a fan of Penn & Teller and their television show "Fool Us". When the CW network said you could get free Fool Us NFTs, I said "sign me up". And with "The Big Game" this weekend, the "Puppy Bowl" is getting a lot of attention - there are Puppy Bowl NFTs available from the same place. Who could ask for anything more?
No disrespect to anyone involved in this, but the facts of this situation are important to understand that NFTs really aren't what many people say they are.
Here is what people say:
1. NFTs are amazing, as they give you full, public ownership of your collectible or other associated asset - you have transparent and trackable ownership, and this record is completely accessible to anyone.
2. NFTs give you true ownership and the availability to leverage and sell your assets. If your NFT appreciates in value over time, you can sell the "picture" from your smartphone to a collector because they know it is the real thing.
3. NFTs are for unique things - when you have an NFT, it shows you are the only owner of that thing.
The Puppy Bowl and Fool US NFTs are available from Chronicle. I'd like to show you a screen shot of the site, but two days before the event, the site is DOWN FOR MAINTENANCE. In fact, I'd like to show you my NFTs ... but I can't - and here is why.
Not on a public blockchain
You have heard it said: NFTs are amazing as they give you full, public ownership of your collectible or other associated asset
In fact: NFTs don't have to be on public blockchains. You CANNOT see your NFT holding in Metamask or any other wallet.
Not visible outside of the Chronicle environment
You have heard it said: you have transparent and trackable ownership, and this record is completely accessible to anyone.
In fact: The only way people can see your Penn & Teller or Puppy Bowl NFTs are on the Chronicle environment.
Not saleable without the Chronicle marketplace
You have heard it said: NFTs give you true ownership and the availability to leverage and sell your assets. If your NFT appreciates in value over time, you can sell the "picture" from your smartphone to a collector because they know it is the real thing.
In fact: While the site says, "The Chronicle Platform enables users of the platform to buy, sell, trade, bid and gift authenticated digital non fungible token collectibles (NFTs)", that has not been the case. Perhaps that's part of the "We're currently upgrading Chronicle with new and exciting features to add to your collectible experience." from the site right now. If this changes, I'll update the article.
In fact: "Ownership" certainly may not mean anything close to what you think. I have no rights to the images, its copyright, or other uses other than owning and potentially selling the item through an authorized marketplace.
NFTs are unique - no one thing is like another
You have heard it said: NFTs are for unique things - when you have an NFT, it shows you are the only owner of that thing.
In fact: Although the Fool Us NFTs are limited in quantity, we are talking about 5,000 or 10.000 completely similar items. That's not unlike baseball cards, coins, art prints, or other similar collectibles.
When is something on Ethereum not Ethereum? When is an NFT not an NFT? What benefits do NFTs give you? It may not be what you think.
As I noted - I have great respect to Penn & Teller (for their talent and their marketing savvy), to the Puppy Bowl and the Orange Twins Rescue group meant to benefit from this year's Puppy Bowl NFTs, and to Chronicle. But people have to know the difference between fact, potential, and aspiration.
What do you think?
Image source: CW Penn & Teller Twitter posting, CW web site
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