Weekly Web3 Recap 12/04/2024

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Servus, it's Lorenz here.???

Welcome back to a new edition of the newsletter that is all about Web3, sports and business.

Today we'll talk about the current winner of Formula 1's Constructors' Championship, FIFA and its Web3 platform, Samsung bringing NFTs onto TVs, a Web3 powered gaming device and an IndyCar sponsorship deal decided by a blockchain community.

Enjoy the read! ??

??? Red Bull Racing brings back the Velocity Series

After launching the first version back in the 2023 Formula 1 season, Red Bull has recently announced "Velocity Series 2.0". It consists of multiple drops with data-driven art pieces inspired by race-team data and on-track telemetry from their RB20 F1 car. Each drop will feature a well-known digital artist. On top of the 1.000 existing Velocity Passes that among others grant access to the drops, they sold another 1.000. Beyond that there will also be a more accessible version of the digital assets.

This activation will once again happen with Red Bull Racing's partner Bybit. Link

Quick take: It's good to see the sports-wise dominating F1 team continue their Web3 program. Personally, I am really curious to see how the more accessible part of the Velocity Series 2.0 will be executed and how the numbers will turn out - McLaren has done a really good job with their "mass-market" program "23/23 digital collectibles" last year. Imho this accessible/mass-market part of a Web3 proposition will be the most important for the upcoming months and years.

And, once again, a partner is involved here....

?? FIFA introduces Extra Time Promotion

FIFA is known to have created its own platform for digital collectibles at the end of 2022 - FIFA+ Collect. To ramp up a new era of their platform, they've launched the "Extra Time" promotion. It includes every digital pack sold coming with a reward pack. The special and interesting thing about it: It's currently the only way to already get your hands on tickets for the 2026 World Cup - either by winning the tickets themselves or the right to buy them. Link

Thoughts: It seems that FIFA is getting more active again when it comes to all things Web3. However, it's fascinating to see that this program for their Web3 based platform is one of the first possibilities to get tickets for the upcoming World Cup.

?? Samsung doubles down on Web3

Last year Samsung has done the first steps into Web3 - "Samsung MX1" - in the course of the launch of a new smartphone model. Now they have announced that they will bring NFTs to their TV devices. In particular there will be an app that let's users experience their digital artworks on a large screen and "the metaverse". There will also be a Web3-TV-Bundle that involves a Samsung TV, a Ledger and some high quality NFTs. Beyond there will be some more benefits such as raffles that include the partners of Samsung's Web3-ecosystem. Link

?? A Web3 Gaming device

The original contributor to the Sui blockchain - the blockchain of Red Bull Racing - has announced that they will launch a gaming handheld with built-in Web3 capabilities. The device will feature multiple game stores and will enable users to own digital assets directly with their device's account. Link

??? Polkadot sponsors IndyCar racing star Conor Daly

Polkadot is coming to Indianapolis 500 as the community decided to sponsor racing driver Conor Daly. The sponsor ship deal involves car branding and will last for a year starting with the Indianapolis 500 race at the end of May. The most interesting part of this sponsorship is the fact that the decision making hasn't been done by a small team or one individual but a large community of "DOT"-token holders - the native currency of Polkadot. Link