Disney launches NFT platform with Dapper Labs

Disney has created a nonfungible token (NFT) platform together with blockchain and metaverse firm Dapper Labs.

According to the Nov. 14 announcement, Disney will tokenize its iconic cartoon characters from the past century onto its NFT marketplace, dubbed Disney Pinnacle. The platform will also include icons from Pixar as well as heroes and villains from the Star Wars galaxy, uniquely styled as collectible and tradable digital pins. “Fans anywhere will be able to collect dynamic pins on their phone and trade instantly and securely with each other no matter where they are in the world,” Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou explained. 

The NFT platform will launch later this year on the Apple App Store for iOS, the Google Play Store for Android and on the web. Currently, only a waitlist and a landing site exist on its official page. Disney Pinnacle is built on layer-1 blockchain Flow, which Dapper Labs also created. Previously, Ticketmaster elected to mint NFT event tickets on the Flow blockchain. 

Earlier this year, Disney pulled the plug on its metaverse division as part of a broader restructuring plan to cut its operating expenses by $5.5 billion and lay off 7,000 staff over two months. The metaverse division’s 50 or so members were left without a new employment contract. 

Founded in Vancouver, Canada in 2018, Dapper Labs received a $15 million investment from Hong Kong Web3 creator Animoca Brands. In July 2023, Dapper Labs announced its third round of staff layoffs year-to-date. The firm is known for its NFT brands such as CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot.

Related: Disney reportedly scraps its metaverse division