NFT marketplace KnownOrigin was founded by David Moore, Andy Gray, and James Morgan in 2018 in Manchester, UK. The platform, known as one of the first NFT marketplaces, enables artists and collectors to create, buy, and resell NFTs via blockchain-supported transactions.
It also partnered with sportswear giant Adidas, software company Adobe, and streaming giant Netflix.
In February 2022, KnownOrigin completed a $4.85 million series A funding round co-led by Sanctor Capital and GBV.
E-commerce giant eBay acquired KnownOrigin on June 21, 2022. The price of the acquisition remained undisclosed. The acquisition was reportedly a strategic move as part of eBay’s tech-led reimagination to introduce digital collecting and NFTs to its platform.
Notably, at that moment, eBay was not new to NFTs. In May 2022, it released its first NFT collection featuring hockey-themed 3D artwork, which was developed in partnership with web3 platform OneOf.
What’s Brewing at KnownOrigin?
Despite being acquired by a tech giant, the platform has not demonstrated any impressive outcomes. According to Dune, in July this year, the platform only had 382 unique on-chain wallets touching KO contracts.
On a side note, the platform reached its peak in December 2022, when 5037 unique users per month were engaged.
During the past month, there have been an average of three sales per day. According to Dune, nine NFTs are minted on the platform daily.
In July, 370 NFTs were sold on the platform, while in December 2022, the platform saw 6739 sales.
It seems like the NFT marketplace is not among the community’s favorites, with Blur and OpenSea at the top of the preference list.
On August 23, KnownOrigin hosted an “ask me anything” on their X (Twitter) account. The virtual gathering’s theme was “Creating in a Bear Market: Tips and Tricks.” However, only 131 individuals tuned into the two-hour talk. The result is quite low, considering that KnowOrigin has 123,800 followers on X.
The low number of listeners might be explained by the community’s overall fading interest in non-fungible tokens and their creation.
With the floor price of blue-chip NFT projects going down and trading volume decreasing, it is clear that NFTs are not as popular as they were in 2021 and 2022.
Job postings and KnownOrigin’s plans
Currently, eBay’s KnownOrigin has two open positions, indicating that the company does not plan to cease its operations. The marketplace is looking for a web3 Solidity engineer who can build rich and customizable NFT contracts for various use cases.
“We are looking for an experienced web3 Solidity Engineer to join the team and help us define, deliver, and realize our vision for the KnownOrigin/eBay NFT protocol,” states the job placement.
According to the announcement, KnownOrigin’s vision includes enabling feature-rich NFT interactions on its platform. The construction of order book protocols for secure and efficient trade settlement, as well as the development of payment protocols for custodial and non-custodial exchanges, showcases the company’s interest in providing user-friendly trading experiences.
The second job placement currently open on the platform is “NFT Community Support Rep.” Within this role, the applicant will resolve tech and non-tech issues raised by community members, act as a mediator between creators and collectors, and build trust, educate, and create a great customer experience.
In addition, the job description emphasizes that the support officer will act as a champion for KnownOrigin and the web3 sector. This suggests that eBay wants to actively promote and integrate web3 concepts and principles within its community, potentially indicating plans for more pronounced involvement in the blockchain space.
This suggests that the company intends to bring about a transformative shift in how users buy, sell, and experience collectibles. Overall, the announcements hint at KnownOrigin’s plans to expand its influence in the world of web3 and NFTs.
However, the current trajectory of KnownOrigin after its acquisition by eBay raises questions about the company’s intentions and strategies for its future operations.
Despite the platform’s acquisition by a tech giant and the initial strategic moves to integrate NFTs into eBay’s ecosystem, it remains unclear why the company is pursuing continued operations during a bear market in the face of unimpressive outcomes.
Source: mPost
