The leading NFT platform, OpenSea, has made adjustments to allow creator fees to be optional for emerging collections.
OpenSea has announced its decision to phase out the Operator Filter, a tool previously used to ensure creator royalties on their platform.
Going forward, OpenSea will adopt a system where royalties for all NFT transactions in the secondary market – the standard marketplace where NFT enthusiasts buy and sell amongst themselves – will be optional.
Furthermore, OpenSea clarified that current NFT collections employing the Operator Filter will continue to have their stipulated royalties applied until February 29, 2024.
For those collections that haven’t adopted the Operator Filter, the status quo will remain.
OpenSea’s co-founder and CEO, Devin Finzer, shared these updates in a blog post this past Thursday.
These modifications are slated to take effect from August 31.
A concise breakdown of these forthcoming changes was also shared on the social media platform, X.
Lack of community support
OpenSea provided three primary reasons for the adjustments made:
First, the company highlighted the insufficient backing for its Operator Filter from the community, mentioning it “relied on unanimous endorsement from the entire ecosystem, which unfortunately did not materialize.”
Second, OpenSea emphasized that “freedom regarding creator fees” is a fundamental value for both NFT collectors and creators. They further pointed out that complete ownership of an NFT should grant users the autonomy to “retain, trade, or obliterate it” without any external constraints.
Finally, OpenSea emphasized that their creator fees represent merely one avenue among several for NFT creators to generate income.
“We believe our position in this ecosystem is to promote and facilitate innovation that extends beyond a solitary use case or commercial strategy,” the NFT platform elaborated.
Historically, OpenSea has held its ground as a predominant platform for NFT transactions. Presently, it stands as the second most significant marketplace in terms of 30-day trading volume, based on statistics from DappRadar.
