Together Labs has teamed up with Immutable X to enable nonfungible token (NFT) transactions in its social avatar and commerce platform IMVU.
The Redwood City, California Together Labs, owner of the IMVU social avatar platform, created VCoin as a transferable digital currency designed for the metaverse, the universe of virtual worlds that are all interconnected, like in novels such as Snow Crash and Ready Player One.
Now it will use Immutable X to enable NFT transactions in IMVU, enabling users to create and trade unique digital items based on NFT technology, which uses the blockchain — the secure and transparent digital ledger — to authenticate one-of-a-kind items.
Sydney, Australia-based Immutable recently raised $60 million. It created a platform on top of Ethereum to monetize NFTs in games, and it is also the creator of the Gods Unchained NFT-based collectible card game. It is using its Immutable X platform to power NFT transactions for other companies as well.
Players in IMVU create their own virtual items, like clothing or furniture for people to use with their social avatars. When other players buy those items, the creators make money in the blockchain-based VCoin cryptocurrency. IMVU gets a cut when people cash out their VCoin.
IMVU received a crypto-centric no-action letter from the staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), enabling IMVU to sell VCoin as a transferable non-security. The advantage of teaming up with Immutable X is that Together Labs gets access to a layer-2 solution for NFTs on the popular Ethereum blockchain.
Ethereum has lots of users that can verify blockchain transactions in a secure way. But it is slow when it comes to processing transactions and it also uses a lot of computing energy. To offset that, Immutable created Immutable X to speed up the transactions tremendously.
The high energy costs translated to big fees, known as gas fees, for Ethereum transactions. But by reducing the computing and energy costs, Immutable X also lowers the gas fees, and Immutable partnered with Trace to buy carbon credits needed to offset the gas fees and energy footprint of any NFT created or traded on Immutable X to zero, the companies said.
The partnership enables IMVU’s one million daily active users to participate in the growing NFT economy while creating and trading digital assets at zero gas fees. The Immutable X platform will be integrated first into Together Labs’ IMVU platform.
Immutable X will boost IMVU users’ virtual experience via adding NFT capabilities to its already-thriving marketplace that has more than 50 million virtual goods. Plus, the integration should enhance the creation of NFTs and remove the complexities for users. Ultimately, more than 200,000 active IMVU creators will be able to easily create, sell and buy NFTs — while saving on gas fees and taking advantage of Ethereum’s security.
Immutable X was created by Immutable, in partnership with StarkWare, to enable a platform for creating and trading NFTs.