OpenSea Makes Its Decision on the Subject Discussed by the NFT World

NFT marketplace giant OpenSea will this week roll out the first of a series of tools that will allow creators of new NFT collections to apply on-chain royalties. About the product, which will launch on November 8, the company said it wanted to “take a thoughtful and principled approach to this issue” after lengthy discussions among market participants on the right course of action to get creators paid.

OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer said in an interview shortly after announcing the move:

“It’s clear that many creators want to be able to charge on-chain, and we believe they should make that choice, not the marketplace. That’s why we’re developing tools that we hope will balance out by giving creators more power to control their business models.

We’re interested in making a better system. Our thinking is always to take a step back and consider all possible solutions to the problem, rather than just follow one part of the process.”

In the coming months, the company will also produce additional tools that serve a similar purpose and will seek community feedback on developments. For existing collections that want options to enforce creator payments, the changes are expected to be rolled out by at least December 8th.

OpenSea is considering a number of different approaches. These may include continuing to impose off-chain fees for some collections groups, allowing on-demand creator fees, or collaborating on other on-chain enforcement options for creators. Finzer said some existing collections’ smart contracts may already allow OpenSea to upgrade on-chain royalties to enforce, while other contracts will be more difficult to change.

Some marketplaces, like Solana marketplace Magic Eden, have chosen to cut creator fees entirely or make it optional, while others, like Stepn’s altcoin’s new NFT marketplace Mooar, have switched to a subscription model.