Amazon is planning to join the Web3 realm with its own NFT initiative as it turns out that the company is planning to launch its own digital asset enterprise this spring. At least five reliable sources, aware of the company’s internal affairs, have told Blockworks about Amazon’s plans.
It looks like Amazon has been busy shopping behind the scenes for a suitable partner to launch this initiative. Its preferred candidates include layer-1 blockchains, digital asset exchanges, and blockchain-based gaming startups. It’s also looking for Web3 developers to help build its digital asset enterprise.
According to two sources, the company is keen on blockchain-based gaming and related NFT applications. Furthermore, rather than Amazon Web Service (AWS), the NFT initiative is expected to run from Amazon itself.
The nature of the operation is yet to be determined. However, according to one source, part of it might involve allowing Amazon customers to play crypto games and claim free NFTs. With that in mind, an official announcement is expected in April. This is going to be major for the entire crypto industry. One of the sources sees the company disrupting several established platforms in the space if they can get this initiative right.
If Amazon Succeeds – It Could Threaten Existing Web3-Based Businesses
It’s not clear who will be in charge of this Web3 onslaught. However, you can expect to see a few hires of personnel with the right skills. In the past, Amazon has posted jobs for developers and engineers with Web3 skill sets. However, it was never clear that they were pursuing anything in the space.
Based on these revelations, there are a few lingering questions, like what will be the full extent of the company’s Web3 initiative and goals? Also, if the company plans to compete with existing NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea and Rarible. If that turns out to be the case, then a successful launch will be deemed a substantial threat by both platforms.
In the past, Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, made it clear that he was open to Amazon entering Web3. Previously, he talked about selling NFTs and integrating crypto, “Yeah, I think it’s down the road [on selling NFTs]…I expect that NFTs will continue to grow very significantly. We’re not probably close to adding crypto as a payment mechanism in our retail business, but I do believe over time that you’ll see crypto become bigger and—it’s possible [that Amazon ingrates crypto payments].”
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