OpenSea wants to Build a Web3 Marketplace Protocol

Nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea has made public its plans to build a Web3 marketplace protocol that would enable “the purchasing and selling of NFTs in a secure and efficient manner.”

In a blog post published on Friday, OpenSea said that the marketplace protocol, which will be known as Seaport, would provide users with the opportunity to acquire NFTs by supplying assets other than just payment tokens like Ether (ETH). The website states that a user “may agree to offer a quantity of ETH / ERC20 / ERC721 / ERC1155 things” in return for an NFT, which suggests that the user can utilize a mix of tokens as a means of payment.

In addition, while making offers, Seaport users have the ability to define the criteria, such as certain characteristics of NFT artwork or pieces that are part of a collection they want. Tipping will also be permitted on the site, provided that the total amount of the tip does not exceed that of the initial offer.

According to the NFT marketplace, “OpenSea does not manage or run the Seaport protocol.” Instead, “we will be simply one, among many, developing on top of this common protocol.” We are all accountable for ensuring each other’s safety as blockchain technology gains more widespread usage and developers construct ever-expanding new use cases.

Introducing Seaport, a brand new web3 marketplace protocol for safely and efficiently buying and selling NFTs.

With an emphasis on flexibility and optimizations, Seaport has been built to support new and evolving use-cases for where NFTs are heading.https://t.co/3lUQIQm0km

— OpenSea (@opensea) May 20, 2022

Seaport has Drawn a lot of Attention on Social Media

On social media, a few users seemed to express perplexity over several ideas included in the new marketplace protocol. Twitter user EffortCapital asked other users to research how Seaport compares to 0x v4 NFT swaps, while user phuktep questioned how the trade of NFTs and ETH for a single token would be reported on tax filings. EffortCapital and phuktep also use Twitter.

After making the announcement in April that it had bought NFT marketplace aggregator Gem, OpenSea has now launched its own marketplace protocol in an effort to provide more value to its most experienced customers. At the time, the platform said that Gem would function as a standalone product, and OpenSea intended to incorporate Gem features such as a collection floor price sweeping tool and rarity-based rankings. However, OpenSea ultimately decided not to do so

Also read: GaryVee Hosts One of a Kind 4-Day NFT Conference