Web3 Watch: Farcaster’s Top Content Features NFTs and Altcoin Promotions
The social media protocol Farcaster has been generating significant attention recently, largely due to the success of its X-like client, Warpcaster. While the release of Frames, a feature that allows external sources to be displayed within the Warpcast feed, has been instrumental in attracting users, the platform’s popularity also stems from its connection to the crypto world, where the potential for profit often drives user interest.
Recent coverage of Farcaster has highlighted its parabolic usage growth, with data from Dune Analytics revealing that the 10 most popular posts (casts) this week have utilized Frames to promote NFTs and other assets. Some of these posts have even required users to like and share the content in exchange for a free mint.
While some users have expressed concerns about the influx of altcoin references in certain channels, Farcaster co-founder Dan Romero remains unfazed by the financialization on Warpcast and other Farcaster clients. According to Romero, distribution is distribution, and while certain use cases in the crypto realm may naturally become more financialized, he emphasizes that not all creative Frames rely heavily on financial elements.
In other news, a class action lawsuit has been filed in a Miami district court, claiming that the NBA was “grossly negligent” in allowing a promotional deal between now-bankrupt crypto firm Voyager Digital and the Dallas Mavericks, owned by Mark Cuban. The suit argues that the NBA had a responsibility to review all marketing campaigns related to the league, including Voyager’s partnership with the Mavericks. The partnership had offered fans $100 in crypto for signing up to the platform.
Voyager itself filed for bankruptcy in 2022 following the collapse of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital. In addition to Mark Cuban, Voyager’s law firm, McCarter & English, is also named in the lawsuit. This legal action adds to a growing list of lawsuits targeting athletes, sports teams, and leagues for their involvement with crypto firms.
In the NFT space, the Nobody collection, which allows owners to interact with their NFT characters using generative AI, recorded impressive sales volume of 11,208 ether this week, according to DeFiLlama. This far surpassed the volume of the next most traded NFT collection, which did not exceed 3,000 ether.
Other noteworthy updates include Mastercard’s announcement of a Web3-powered trivia competition, where users can compete for UEFA Champions League match tickets through trivia contests unlocked with an NFT pass. Additionally, the NEAR Foundation and D3 Global are seeking approval to create a .near top-level domain (TLD), while the Avalanche-built first-person shooter game, Shrapnel, has launched early access for some users on the Epic Games Store.