#74 Meta Retires NFTs Plans. Ethereum’s Shanghai Upgrade & Unstaking are Coming.
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Ethereum’s Shanghai Upgrade & Unstaking are Coming
The Ethereum developer community has finally set a target date for the much-anticipated Shanghai upgrade: April 12. This upgrade is super important for everyone in the Ethereum ecosystem, as it's going to enable unstaking of ETH, something lots of people have been waiting for!
In case you're not familiar, staking is a big part of Ethereum's transition from a Proof of Work (PoW) to a Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism (also known as Ethereum 2.0). This change is all about improving the network's scalability, energy efficiency, and security. In a PoS system, validators (the ones creating new blocks and confirming transactions) are chosen based on how much ETH they're holding and willing to stake as collateral.
Right now, you can stake your ETH, but there's no way to unstake it. This has made some people a bit hesitant to stake their tokens, as they can't access their staked funds if the market changes or if they need the funds for something else. With the Shanghai upgrade, we'll finally have the option to unstake our ETH, giving us more flexibility and control over our assets.
Now, don't expect unstaking to be instant. To keep the Ethereum network secure and stable, the system will adjust the unstaking time dynamically. This way, a sudden, huge unstaking event won't hurt the network, and we'll still be able to get our staked ETH back in a reasonable amount of time.
The Shanghai upgrade is a massive milestone in Ethereum's development and its journey towards Ethereum 2.0. With unstaking becoming a reality, I think we'll see even more people participating in the staking process, helping Ethereum become an even stronger blockchain platform.
Mihnea
Impending smart contract regulation
On Tuesday, the European Parliament decided to surprise us with a bill on smart devices and the importance of privacy. The EU’s known to apply harsher privacy laws to keep its citizens safe, but this isn’t the main reason for the surprise. In fact, the “Data Act” bill mentioned smart contracts - and not in the way we would’ve liked.
With an overwhelmingly positive vote, the lawmakers agreed, among other things, that smart contracts require a “reset” button. Basically, half of a smart contract’s value (besides its automated actions) would be erased: the immutability no longer exists. Developers would have to build this in their smart contracts’ design and would probably have access to it - although it is currently unclear who would have the access to that last-resort solution.
Not all is lost. In its current iteration, it sounds like data-sharing smart contracts are in the legislators’ sights. The main reason for their rather aggressive stance on this can be traced back to the EU’s privacy-centered tech laws. They intend to standardize smart contracts and set some general rules for building one, thus being able to create a personalized legislative framework for mass deployment.
How much of a worry should this be for us, the wider crypto community? The Block argues that currently the crypto industry isn’t specifically aimed at - but I would argue that this sets an unfavorable precedent. What about when the regulators will come for DeFi? Will they refrain from trying to regulate it as they did before (should the bill pass as it is today)? I’m afraid not.
Surely, the law itself sounds horrible if you believe in CBDCs as being dystopic and a tool for mass surveillance. Imagine the government watching your transactions in real time and deciding to revert a payment or block it altogether. We must stand our ground and make sure this doesn’t affect the wider ecosystem.
Matei
Meta Retires NFTs Plans but Continues with Token Efforts
Meta is stepping back from its work with non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Facebook and Instagram, according to a recent Twitter thread by Meta's commerce and fintech lead, Stephane Kasriel.
Meta spokesperson Joshua Gunter confirmed this in an email to The Verge, stating that the changes would take effect in the coming weeks. Kasriel explained that Meta is reevaluating its priorities to improve focus across the company. "We're winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses," he said. The company aims to concentrate on areas where they can make a significant impact at scale, such as messaging and monetization on Reels, and enhancing Meta Pay.
This move away from NFTs appears to linked with Mark Zuckerberg's initiative to make 2023 the "year of efficiency." Other casualties of this push include the Reels Play bonus program. The shift also follows the discontinuation of Meta-backed cryptocurrency Diem and Meta's Novi digital wallet in 2022.
Despite Meta's exit from the NFT space, other companies are eagerly entering the market. Reddit continues to promote its "digital collectible" avatar, while Starbucks recently sold out its limited edition of 2,000 $100 NFTs as part of its Odyssey customer loyalty program.
The decision by Meta to abandon its NFT plans does not come as a surprise for several reasons. Firstly, Meta will never be decentralized, which goes against the core principles of blockchain and NFTs. Secondly, connecting one's crypto wallet to centralized social media accounts seemed like a bad idea right from the start. And last but not least the fees for Meta's marketplace were nearly 20 times higher than those charged on Opensea, making it a less attractive option for users. The lack of utility provided by Meta's NFT integration also contributed to the skepticism. Finally, the timing was unfavorable for Meta to invest in highly volatile, high-risk industries, as it is currently focusing on efficiency and long-term growth.
Evelyne
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