Mark Cuban is skeptical of metaverse land, he says at SXSW

Mark Cuban is not a fan of virtual land and thinks everyone should get a crypto wallet. These were just a few of the thoughts the "Shark Tank" star and Dallas Mavericks owner shared during a Monday panel at SXSW. The panel was meant to focus on Fireside, an app for creators Cuban co-founded with Falon Fatemi. They were joined by app-user and comedian Craig Kilbourn, and moderator Shira Lazar. But the conversation morphed into a larger discussion on Web3. In addition to virtual land and the need for crypto wallets, Cuban also spoke about the popularity and future use cases for NFTs, and the role of crypto coins and tokens, like Dogecoin. Virtual land is a waste of money Cuban made clear that he doesn’t think virtual land is a good investment. While the technological tools brands need to join Web3 are getting better (such as NFT creation and blockchain usage), the challenge is to keep customers interested, creating sustained participation, he said. Commercial land in the real world is often bought based on “location, location, location,” and the amount of foot traffic, Cuban noted. But he believes the metaverse still needs more people in it before land has value. For a brand that has purchased land, it might not mean much if no one visits. A challenge for Web3 will be to make it welcoming to a large number of people, who then want to come back. “That’s a good way to lose all your money in the metaverse,” Cuban said. “If you bought Times Square in a metaverse where people don’t show up to see it, you’re fucked.” See all of Ad Age's A-List 2022 winners here. Dot-Com NFT Bubble In the last year, brands have turned to NFTs as a new way to connect with fans and turn cultural moments and IP into a source of revenue. Their popularity reminds Cuban of the Dot-Com bubble, when companies were experimenting with websites. From the thousands who failed, brands like Amazon and eBay still remain. This may become the case with NFTs, with collections like Cryptopunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club already the most well-known. Cuban also believes there will be more consolidation in the NFT space. This is already happening, with BAYC creator Yuga Labs buying CrypoPunks. He does like that BAYC assigns the NFT’s IP to its owner, meaning that they can sell stickers or t-shirts with their Ape. Yuga Labs plans to do the same with CryptoPunks. Get a crypto wallet Cuban sees crypto payments as another way for creators to diversify their revenue streams. Crypto payments are also more secure, and let creators cut out the middleman of platforms. “With crypto and the blockchain, you can provide content and get paid immediately,” he said, rather than paying a percentage to a credit card company or PayPal. Creators who sell their work on the blockchain can also make royalties on future sales, something brands are well aware of. Cuban gave the example of a publisher turning a college textbook into an NFT. When the student is done with it, instead of wading through buy-back sites, they can sell it to the next student, and the publisher automatically gets a resale percentage. Coins = noise While Cuban encourages folks to get a crypto wallet, he does think that the boom of cryptocurrencies and tokens has created too much noise, with average consumers thinking crypto wallets are only for those who care about Dogecoin. But these funny cryptocurrencies can also be a gateway for real crypto usage. Cuban shared that buying Dogecoin was how he taught his son about cryptocurrency. “Get a wallet and try it out, just so you understand how it works,” he said.

Mark Cuban is skeptical of metaverse land, he says at SXSW

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