The former Disney CEO argues there are “amazing” prospects for the potential of non-fungible tokens (NFT), implying the company’s possible metaverse role.
Iger forecast an “explosion” in the NFT area in a conversation with New York Times reporter Kara Swisher as the world will continue its move to the digital domain. Iger compared NFTs to other types of tangible collectibles, like baseball cards, which he grew up with.
Iger, who was CEO of Disney for 15 years, stated that the business has begun dabbling in NFTs by licensing many of its intellectual property. In addition, Disney has collaborated with digital collectibles site Veve to offer NFTs featuring characters out of its popular Marvel world.
Despite being receptive to the prospects of NFTs, Iger criticized the area for a lack of copyright governance and enforcement. He singled out NFT network OpenSea in particular for allegedly being complicit in the absence of copyright enforcement. Iger stated that he was “amazed by all the Disney material” on OpenSea, adding that the majority of it was stolen and not generated by the individuals who owned the IPs.
Iger also hinted at Disney’s future goals in the metaverse, stating the corporation will have to engage in “moderating and monitoring conduct” to prevent the “toxic” climate generated by Internet 2.0 sites like Facebook and Twitter.
