What do Amazon, Ebay, and all ecommerce sites have in common? They are just a digital front for the historically old trade of commerce. They slapped a UI and payment processor on top of some logistics, making it easier to buy and sell.
So what does the new era of commerce in Web3 look like? Is it reminiscent of Ready Player One, or is it something more capitalistic? Let’s start with what an asset is, and how it creates value for the end user.
An asset has some sort of utility to the consumer- they can use it, improve their lives, or gain something more intangible from it (money, status, organization, economic advancement, etc). I would argue, though, that it is simply something that society has deemed socially important.
NFT marketplaces have simply given a seamless, public, experience to a new form of commerce. Instead of the items being physical, they exist in a far simpler form. With so many people spending increasing amounts of hours online, and isolation at an all time high, your digital identity has become arguably more important than the one you maintain in the ‘real’ world.
As technology persists, we’ll see the real world assets (like Pharma, birth certificates, paintings, etc) represented by a digital twin. Whereas most NFT applications are consumer-focused with flipping and/or avatar identity, the entire digital infrastructure of our internet will inevitably be Web3. There is no room for one week bank transfers, pharmaceutical labels that are misplaced on incorrect bottles, and land that can be lost because of a fire that displaced the actual deed. For most consumers, they won't notice the transformation. But, for the engineers, artists, and merchants, this will replace almost every aspect of their online presence.
