At a time when many Bollywood and sports stars are preparing to launch their digital collectibles, or non-fungible tokens (NFTs), actor-investor Rana Daggubati and Anthill Ventures founder Prasad Vanga have backed Indian-American entrepreneur Abinav Varma Kalidindi’s Indian metaverse company, Ikonz.
Ikonz, which will be launched in August 2021, is a wealth-building platform that will assist IP owners, artists, and other established icons in managing their digital assets.
Ikonz, according to Kalidindi, will serve as a 360-degree platform for IP owners, assisting them in navigating the complexities of technology and understanding the various methods of monetisation and upscaling.
Last year, trading in NFTs, which are blockchain-based digital assets, skyrocketed. According to data tracker DappRadar, NFTs traded for more than $23 billion last year, and 2022 has begun with at least three NFT sales of more than $5 million each.
While NFTs have yet to take off in India, Kalidindi believes the country will be the next frontier with a “huge opportunity.”
“The social media scene will change drastically in the next 5-7 years with Web3. Everything will be in 3D. The Internet will be decentralised and based on blockchain technology,” Kalidindi, founder and CEO of Ikonz . “I have been presenting the idea of Ikonz to investors here in India after shifting base and Rana (Daggubati) and Prasad understood it very quickly.”
“What CAA or KWAN did for artists in the physical world, we plan to do in the metaverse. NFTs and royalty is just the tip of the iceberg, and we see huge potential for the right holders,” said Kalidindi.
Ikonz has already signed Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle and hopes to bring together at least half of India’s premium entertainment IPs under a single banner within the next 12-18 months.
“We will have actors, athletes, and other celebrities, as well as social media icons, content producers, studios and other rights holders,” said Kalidindi.
Ikonz will enter into exclusive agreements with IP owners to manage their assets in the metaverses. “We have big plans and will be working on cross-metaverse characters and assets.” There are many nuances to consider, and we intend to work on how royalty streams will flow in the event of interoperability between these metaverses.”
According to Kalidindi, most of the major brands that are currently present in the physical space will eventually join the metaverse.
NFT collections have already been launched by companies such as Adidas, Nike, Pepsi, and others. Bollywood stars Salman Khan and Amitabh Bachchan, as well as a few cricketers, have launched their own NFTs in India.
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