This partnership spawns the introduction of the WADE Friends & Family Membership NFT which allows holders to unlock access to exclusive fashion and music events, as well as digital ownership to globally recognized IPs.
San Francisco – Magic Eden, the leading destination for NFT discovery, expression, and ownership, announced a partnership with digital intellectual property (IP) entertainment company IPX (formerly known as LINE FRIENDS) and global blockchain-NFT company CRIPCO.
The collaboration will commence with the unveiling of WADE, a virtual influencer already making waves in the music and art world for their collaboration with global brands. The WADE Friends & Family (aka WADE F&F) pass will be a membership NFT that grants holders intimate access to WADE’s private parties, exclusive merch from collaborations with fashion and culture labels, as well as airdrop and allowlist opportunities to future WADE NFT and IP drops created from the artistry of IPX and CRIPCO.
Magic Eden will provide launchpad (primary) and secondary marketplace support for the mint of the 2,100 supply WADE F&F membership NFT in the coming weeks.
WADE is an up-and-coming virtual influencer making a splash in the music, fashion, and art world. Born as a mutant made of water with superpowers, WADE’s love for skateboarding, surfing, and photography inspires his music and artistic creations. Recently, WADE’s photographic talents were showcased at the ‘O! Leica 2022 – Out of the Ordinary’ art exhibition held by Lecia in Seoul in March.
WADE has also caught the attention in the streetwear world after releasing videos with leading sneaker brands ‘Peaceminusone X Nike Kwondo 1’s F&F Special Shoebox’ and ‘Air Max 2 x Kasina – Won-Ang’. Extending their reach across fashion brands, WADE was also named as the first virtual model for acclaimed fashion brand SAINT Mxxxxxx’s (SAINT MICHAEL) 2022 A/W collection campaign. The campaign will be photographed by WADE as self portraits and paired with new music produced by WADE.
Through the WADE F&F membership NFT launch, Magic Eden, in collaboration with IPX and CRIPCO, will be ushering a new form of IP ownership for new and existing NFT collectors. In addition to unlocking access to future WADE NFT drops, events, and branded merch, the WADE F&F pass will grant owners with airdrop and whitelist opportunities for NFTs featuring IPX’s ‘OOZ & Mates’ concept and other intellectual properties.
The ‘OOZ & Mates’ collection will feature lovable and charismatic animated characters that entitle holders to conduct IP business with the NFTs they hold – which could extend across short-form videos, web-cartoons, games, and metaverse projects. These collections will be informed by IPX’s professional insight in the character industry and its track record of generating USD 833 million in IP transactions by 2021.
WADE F&F will be the first NFT collection to launch on Solana from IPX’s library of mega IP concepts. The WADE F&F NFT will be minted and traded on Magic Eden, which has helped launch over 300 NFT collections, and sees over 90% of all NFT volume on Solana.
“IPX plans to expand the influence and value offerings of WADE, who is making his mark in entertainment and fashion, into NFTs through creative collaborations across boundaries with various artists in a decentralized space, transforming WADE into a culturally influential virtual artist,” said an IPX official.
“Taking on a different approach from other virtual influencers, WADE will continue to set new trends that shape the fashion and music scenes by providing a wide array of engaging and immersive on-and-offline experiences.”
Zhuoxun Yin, COO and Co-Founder of Magic Eden, commented, “At Magic Eden, we have ambitions to onboard the next billion users to Web3. Bringing in unique IPs like WADE, which sits at the intersection of fashion, music, and culture, allows us to reach new users who will be excited about the many benefits that NFT ownership can unlock.
WADE F&F holders will not only be able to access exclusive brand collaboration merch and community events, but they will also be able to participate in future NFT drops and ownership of ‘OOZ & Mates’ and other emerging and mega IPs. The WADE Family & Friends membership NFT launch with IPX/CRIPCO will change the game for digital ownership rights in the future.”
About Magic Eden
Magic Eden is the leading community-centric NFT marketplace driving the next billion users to Web3. Led by former crypto, tech, and hospitality leaders, Magic Eden is building a user-friendly platform powered by market-leading minting and trading solutions. Magic Eden brings dynamic cultural moments onto the blockchain, empowering users across thousands of digital communities to create, discover and collect unique NFTs. For more information, please visit www.magiceden.io.
About IPX (FKA. LINE FRIENDS)
IPX is the new corporate name of LINE FRIENDS, a global character brand that originally started from Original Characters including BROWN, CONY, created for use as stickers for the leading mobile messenger app LINE and its 200 million active users worldwide. IPX announced itself as a ‘digital IP platform’ company to enter the digital IP based metaverse and NFT business.
IPX announced its vision of IP 3.0 – allowing anyone to create, own, and generate revenue from IPs – and unveiled ‘FRENZ,’ a new IP generator platform where users can create personal character IPs for utilization in metaverse and NFT services. Through strategic partnerships with various companies, and its digital IP ‘OOZ & mates,’ virtual artist ‘WADE’, IPX is expanding its metaverse and NFT businesses and expertise.
Meanwhile, IPX has created popular IPs including ‘BT21’ (BTS) and broadened their boundaries to virtual influencers. Moreover, IPX has expanded its IP-based business by partnering with global companies including Netflix (original animated series), SUPERCELL (Brawl Stars) and
NEXON (KartRider).IPX currently operates in 15 markets worldwide including Seoul, New York, LA, Tokyo, and Shanghai, and also operates in 15 online sales platforms.
About CRIPCO
CRIPCO is a Singapore-based global blockchain and NFT company that aims to popularize NFTs based on various IPs, and will list its native IP3 token on the FTX exchange on July 8, 2022. CRIPCO’s governance is based on a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), which oversees all business-critical decisions from IP screening to IP-based NFT projects. Investors and partners include FTX Ventures and SOLANA Ventures.
The CRIPCO DAO is made up of corporations from various fields, renowned artists, and other influential members across industries including IPX (formerly LINE FRIENDS), NAVER Z (ZEPETO), Marciano MMG, Fujiwara Hiroshi, Edison Chen, KB (Kyubum Lee), and James Fauntleroy. In addition to attracting investment from global blockchain venture capitals and a major fashion platform, CRIPCO has secured partnerships with companies in the blockchain industry and is building its ecosystem to realize its ‘IP 3.0 Hub’ vision. Further details on CRIPCO and its services can be found on http://cripco.com.
