China’s State Media to Mint NFTs Despite Crypto Crush https://ift.tt/3ehEseW

TL;DR Breakdown

• This Friday, China’s government-operated Xinhua News network will launch its inaugural digital art.
• The NFT features unique moments of 2021 that the firm documented.

China’s major state media is launching its NFTs. Xinhua News corporation announced launching a set of journal images called “News Digital Collection.” The corporation will avail the journal images on the blockchain network.

An NFT is a digital hash stored on a blockchain. It allows artistic work, music, and any virtual asset to have distinct tokens. They’re important for verifying an asset’s possession plus insufficiency and allowing artists to sell material like digital art. This year, NFTs have received a lot of media interest as sportspersons, entertainers, and artists have tried it out.

Various media personnel shot the images in Xinhua’s NFT collection. The photographs chosen reflect significant events of 2021. One such key event is the Chinese Communist Party’s 100th commemoration.

Xinhua goes NFT despite China’s crypto ban

According to reports, the media outlet will publish the virtual assets on December 24 at 12:00 UTC. They will print all the 11 images in ten thousand copies on Tencent’s network service. Moreover, each NFT can be accessed at no fee.

Xinhua is the only news company in China to enter the NFT area. Yet, most stations worldwide have been experimenting with it all along.

The introduction of Xinhua’s NFT coincides with China’s toughest anti-crypto campaign. The Chinese authorities outlawed Bitcoin mining in the entire country in the recent past. Furthermore, it has been ruled that any activity related to cryptos has been illegal since then.

Xinhua’s digital asset may fall into a gray area from a legal standpoint. The state of China has not declared NFT illegal. But, their link cryptocurrency may depict their illegality.

Yet, Xinhua is a government-owned entity. Thus, it might enjoy some immunity. The ban might hit individual NFTs operated on networks like Cardano or Ether.

Xinhua’s NFTs are different compared to other virtual assets and monetized assets. For instance, they are expense-free to mint and rely on a regulated network service.

Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Ant Group Co. might have the approval to proceed with their blockchain activities. Both firms have unveiled NFTs in their networks. Their unveiling comes at the background of stringent rules regarding crypto-related activities in China. The Digital news collectibles will work on Tencent cloud blockchain. They will contain unique Identification embedded in them.

Capturing history

The Chinese state news agency isn’t alone in its interest in non-ferrous metals. Xinhua joins the ranks of other news organizations in recognizing the digital artifacts.

They, too, have begun to use the blockchain to mark important events. The News station sold its first digital asset earlier this year. AP later sold NFTs of its most iconic pictures to honor its 175th anniversary.

The strategy to capture monumental moments in NFTs might be a game-changer worldwide. And when everything settles, China will be the proprietor through its state-owned station.