The Taiwanese pop icon Jay Chou backed firm has released a non-fungible token (NFT) project that features virtual avatars called “Phanta Bears”. The company joins an expanding list of celebrities and sports stars testing the technology that verifies ownership of unique digital assets.
On New Year’s Day, Chou’s PHANTACi fashion brand launched a collection of 10,000 algorithmically created digital avatars, the Phanta Bears, which were sold out in less than 40 minutes. Ezek, the decentralised entertainment platform by Starvision that hosted the sale, tweeted an official statement about the sale.
Phanta Bears prices surged to nearly 0.4 ETH on the peer-to-peer NFT marketplace Opensea on Monday. This is a significant increase from Phanta Bears’ issuance price of 0.26 cryptocurrency ETH or about US$1,000. As shown in the illustration, each bear is uniquely designed, using different colors, clothing and accessories as designed by the fashion brand that Chou founded.
Additionally, the bears serve as membership cards, granting owners access to Ezek’s member-only features, such as virtual concerts, which the company is preparing. In addition to access to the entertainment metaverse, Phanta Bear NFT owners will receive priority access, according to Ezek.
