The leading NFT marketplace on Solana, Magic Eden, took to Twitter to announce the launch of MetaShield, in collaboration with Coralcube- another NFT marketplace.
This came after a series of issues had been tabled regarding NFTs bypassing royalties and robbing creators of the monetary recognition attached to their creation.
According to the tweet, Magic Eden explained that royalties were essential revenue streams to support creators and enable them to grow their projects. They further stated that “the royalties are being threatened by marketplaces allowing collectors to set custom royalties.”
A further explanation of how MetaShield would benefit NFT creators was highlighted in a blog post on ME’s official help desk. Before going into details about the new implementations, it is crucial to understand how NFT royalties work.
How Do NFT Royalties Work?
NFT royalties are a certain percentage given to the creator each time their NFT creation is sold on the marketplace. They are made from secondary/resales. The royalties are perpetual and regulated by smart contracts for automatic payments.
Some marketplaces allow NFT creators to set their royalties and others typically set it between 5-10%, which is considered the standard range for royalty.
The MetaShield Updates
A quick read through the information on Magic Eden’s help desk shows that MetaShield grants creators who hold Update Authority the ability to review listings and sales of NFTs that bypass royalties.
The post illustrates how creators can access the creators’ tool where features like current listings, trades, editors to modify their NFTs, shielding and reverting, and NFT repayment tools are at their disposal.
The “current listings” feature shows users all listings on marketplaces hosting customized royalties. They may sort through the fields and narrow them down based on mint address, seller, etc.
Moving on to the “trade” panel, creators can review all past trades made using customized royalties. Even further, token addresses of the NFTs sold using bypassed royalties can be accessed and exported.
Shielding an NFT
If an NFT creator finds out their NFT has gone through secondary sales and the collectors bypassed royalties, they can choose to make modifications. These modifications shield their NFT creations from further violations.
For creators wishing to make changes to their NFTs, the editor tool allows them to do as they see fit- obscuring the images, adding watermarks, and altering descriptions and associated metadata.
If the altered NFT is to be reverted, the creator can do so in sequence, depending on how many modifications have been added.
“If the creator adds a watermark to an NFT then adds a blur after that, they will have to revert the NFT to get it back to its original state.”
Another feature of the MetaShield is the repayment tool for settling royalty debts. The debt is calculated as the cumulative debt- the gap between the royalty amount in the NFTs metadata and royalties paid.
Magic Eden Addresses Responses on Twitter
While several people responded favorably to the announcement, others claimed that MetaShield was an initiative that would allow Magic Eden to take control of NFTs.
Magic Eden took to Twitter again to clear up several misconceptions, restating the launch was to see hardworking creators rewarded and paid. It is a tool for creators, who can always change their NFTs.
The shielding procedure would not punish buyers but warn them about honoring the creator royalty- they added.
