Microsoft's Minecraft junks Blockchain-based NFTs on its platform

Popular Microsoft-owned game Minecraft has announced not to support non-fungible tokens (NFTs), giving a shock to the Blockchain developer community.

An NFT is a unique, non-editable digital token that is part of a blockchain and often purchased with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

An NFT can be associated with any form of digital asset such as an MPEG or a GIF, but the most common use case today is digital art like JPEGs.

"NFTs are not inclusive of all our community and create a scenario of the haves and the have-nots," Minecraft said in a statement late on Wednesday.

"The speculative pricing and investment mentality around NFTs takes the focus away from playing the game and encourages profiteering, which we think is inconsistent with the long-term joy and success of our players," the company added.

To ensure that Minecraft players have a safe and inclusive experience, Blockchain technologies will not be permitted to be integrated inside Minecraft's client and server applications.

"Nor may Minecraft in-game content such as worlds, skins, persona items, or other mods, be utilised by Blockchain technology to create a scarce digital asset," the company announced.

The company further said that NFTs and other Blockchain technologies creates digital ownership based on scarcity and exclusion, which does not align with its values of creative inclusion and playing together.

"We are also concerned that some third-party NFTs may not be reliable and may end up costing players who buy them. Some third-party NFT implementations are also entirely dependent on Blockchain technology and may require an asset manager who might disappear without notice," Minecraft warned.

There have also been instances where NFTs were sold at artificially or fraudulently inflated prices.

"We have no plans of implementing blockchain technology into Minecraft right now," it added.

--IANS

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