Loyalty Rewards are Moving to the Blockchain

08/14/22 • 26 min

Despite the struggling NFT market, brands we know and love continue to launch NFT projects and many have begun moving their Loyalty Rewards programs to the blockchain. Imagine being able to wrack up airline miles and then sell them to someone else, or buying a music festival ticket that lets you vote on the lineup. We speak with Riley De Leon from CNBC to learn about the shifting structure of Loyalty Rewards programs, as well as Matt Smolin from Hang.XYZ to learn how he's helping big brands make the switch.

Moonbirds is a "Blue Chip" NFT project that had originally promised it's community that they would have full IP rights to their NFT's, similar to other popular projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club. This week they changed the rights to all their NFT's to CC0's, making the images open to the public and enraging investors. Shira held a Twitter Spaces on the subject and was joined by Kevin Rose, founder of Moonbirds, to try and understand why the sudden change.

Lastly, Tornado Cash is the latest Crypto company to come under the attack from regulators. The company allows investors to obscure their transaction data from being traced, but has been used by nefarious groups like The Lazorous Group from North Korea. Now, users are trolling regulators by sending small amounts of Crypto to celebrities. We speak with Matt Leising to learn more about the situation, and how hard it will be for regulators to enforce.

00:01 - Welcome

00:40- Weekly Headlines

4:48 - Riley De Leon Writer at CNBC - Loyalty Rewards programs and the blockchain

9:00 - Matt Smolin Founder of Hang.xyz - How Web3 can foster a more personal relationship with brands

11:50 - Twitter Spaces Live (Kevin Rose Founder of Moonbirds NFT) - The shift to CC0 Intellectual Property Rights

20:27 - Matt Leising of Decential.io - What is Tornado Cash and why was it just banned in the US

00:01 - Welcome

00:40- Weekly Headlines

4:48 - Riley De Leon Writer at CNBC - Loyalty Rewards programs and the blockchain

9:00 - Matt Smolin Founder of Hang.xyz - How Web3 can foster a more personal relationship with brands

11:50 - Twitter Spaces Live (Kevin Rose Founder of Moonbirds NFT) - The shift to CC0 Intellectual Property Rights

20:27 - Matt Leising of Decential.io - What is Tornado Cash and why was it just banned in the US

Previous Episode

How NFT's are Helping Ukraine in the War Against Russia

The Meta History Museum uses unique NFT's to help fund the restoration of historical sites in Ukraine, as well as military supplies to help fight the Russian invasion. The NFT's are an act of historical preservation - daily events in Ukraine are chronicled on the blockchain as unique works of art. We speak with Alisa Fursa live from Kyiv, Ukraine to learn more about how this new tech is being used in War.

Plus, the crash of Crypto has drained thousands of US investors... but what about the global impacts? From evading sanctions to replacing national currencies... we speak with Benjamin Powers and Joshua Keating from Grid News to learn why some foreign governments lean heavily into Crypto, and how the crash has impacted their motives.

Lastly, WEB3 opportunities aren't just reshaping Silicon Valley and Wall Street! Robert Richardson from Disrupt Art is the founder of Midwest Con, the first NFT conference coming to the midwest. He joins the show to tell Shira why he's bringing Web3 to the Midwest, and what attendees can expect to see there.

00:01 - Welcome

00:40- Weekly Headlines

05:00 - Benjamin Powers + Joshua Keating Writers at Grid - International Impact of the Crypto Crash

12:00 - Alice Fursa - The Meta History Museum

20:27 - Robert Richardson of Disrupt Art + Creator of MidwestCon - The first NFT Conference coming to the Midwest

Next Episode

Artist Royalties Are Under Attack

One of the biggest benefits of Web3 and blockchain tech is that Artists can be compensated for their work long after the initial sale. The benefit of selling your work on the blockchain is that royalty terms are baked into an underlying Smart Contract tied to the artists work. But some platforms are creating ways to circumvent these rules and undercut the agreements. This week sparked a huge debate on twitter over Artist Royalties in Web3, so we sit down with Andrew Hayward of Decrypt Media to break it all down. Plus Web3 artist SWOPES joins Shira to give her take.

After months of anticipation, the Fed has issued guidelines for banks looking to get into Crypto trading. We're joined by Hannah Lang, writer at Reuters, to try and understand what rules have been laid out and what this means for regulators.

Lastly, there's a new Blockchain on the rise: Tezos. While most Cyrpto has struggled in recent months, Tezos seems to be seeing steady growth through the bear market. Langston Thomas of NFT Now tells us everything we need to know abut this growing ecosystem, whats behind it's success, and where the coin could be headed next.

00:01 - Welcome

00:45- Weekly Headlines

4:58 - Hannah Lang Writer at Reuters - Fed Regulations for Banks + Crypto

11:57 - Andrew Hayward Culture Editor at Decrypt Media - Overview of Artist Royalties in the NFT Space

16:50 - Elise Swopes NFT Artist - Why are artist royalties important, and what does this disruption in Web3 mean for her?

20:30 - Langston Thomas of NFT Now - What is "Tezos" crypto and why is it rising in the bear market?