The emergence of blockchain's use in the gaming industry is an opportunity for smaller developers to retain and grow market share, driven by strategic use of the multibillion-dollar non-fungible token (NFT) sector, according to industry experts.
“Three years ago, no one understood what gaming can be in blockchain … today, I believe we have already entered the era of mass adoption,” Ritam Gupta, founder and chief executive of blockchain gaming platform Defi11, said during a panel discussion at Gitex Global in Dubai.
“Gaming is a craze and people are starting to understand that we can move forward with gaming and blockchain together in several use cases.”
NFTs are virtual assets that are unique, cannot be replaced with others and can be sent to other digital wallets. In gaming, NFTs can be used as an item to aid players. As with Bitcoin – the world's largest cryptocurrency – they are limited in quantity, potentially adding to their value.
The advent of blockchain technology – a database structured in a manner that is difficult or impossible to hack and on which Bitcoin was built – has spawned opportunities in areas other than cryptocurrency.
The decentralised nature of blockchain, a system that has no central authority and is owned by several users, also gives smaller players a chance to compete with bigger studios on a larger scale.
The market for NFTs surged to a record high of $10.7 billion in sales in the third quarter of this year, up 328 per cent from the second quarter and a staggering 78,000 per cent leap from only $13.7 million in the first half of 2020, data from industry tracker DappRadar showed. NFTs from games are among the most popular items, trailing only the utility, art and collectibles categories, it added.
The continued transition into a more digital and virtual world is also being pushed by major technology companies, most notably by Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, who said the world's largest social media network would spend $50m to build the so-called metaverse, a digital space that allows users to communicate and move virtually.
However, there are risks. In August, a fake NFT was allegedly sold through English street artist Banksy’s website after it was hacked by scammers, costing the buyer $335,560 in cryptocurrency. The hacker eventually returned the money to the buyer.
NFTs are also facing increased scrutiny from regulators.
“Governments are thinking how to regulate this, how do we tax this, how much is being taken out of the physical economy,” John Lillywhite, a Google research associate at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government, said at the panel.
Governments are thinking how to regulate this, how do we tax this, how much is being taken out of the physical economy
John Lillywhite,
Google research associate at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government
“Once Big Tech and some of the blockchain players start gaining into the space, it will cascade into a series of economic, cultural and political questions.”
While blockchain and NFTs present a big opportunity, the barriers to entering them are among the challenges as users usually require a balance of native platform tokens, which requires cryptocurrency wallets and exchanges, J C Kim, co-chief executive of open-source platform Planetarium, told the panel.
“Blockchain solves many of the legacy problems of the gaming industry. Technology like non-fungible tokens allows users to own their in-game assets, preventing the challenges of account theft. They could even port them between different games, opening up new avenues of value for the sector,” she said.
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
Veil (Object Lessons)
Rafia Zakaria
Bloomsbury Academic
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
The years Ramadan fell in May
Dubai World Cup draw
1. Gunnevera
2. Capezzano
3. North America
4. Audible
5. Seeking The Soul
6. Pavel
7. Gronkowski
8. Axelrod
9. New Trails
10. Yoshida
11. K T Brave
12. Thunder Snow
13. Dolkong
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World Cup warm up matches
May 24 Pakistan v Afghanistan, Bristol; Sri Lanka v South Africa, Cardiff
May 25 England v Australia, Southampton; India v New Zealand, The Oval
May 26 South Africa v West Indies, Bristol; Pakistan v Bangladesh, Cardiff
May 27 Australia v Sri Lanka, Southampton; England v Afghanistan, The Oval
May 28 West Indies v New Zealand, Bristol; Bangladesh v India, Cardiff
More on Quran memorisation:
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Secret Pigeon Service: Operation Colomba, Resistance and the Struggle to Liberate Europe
Gordon Corera, Harper Collins
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
Power: 435hp at 5,900rpm
Torque: 520Nm at 1,800-5,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Price: from Dh498,542
On sale: now
