NFT Guild: Dynamic Royalties & Burning Tools for Creators

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

NFT Guild

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Entity (Not Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

10

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

We’ll build an intuitive platform enabling non-technical creators to easily configure and deploy open-source smart contracts for dynamic NFT royalties and burning/upgrading mechanics.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

No dependencies.

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

Yes

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

Project will be fully open source. We are releasing all the code and assets of the project under the MIT licence.

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

We at the NFT Guild believe that NFTs are currently the best available technology for the representation of property. Regardless if the property represented by NFTs are artworks, collectibles or real world assets (RWAs), the fundamentals of the technology are the same, and the potential applications and use cases are almost limitless. When coupled with the state of the art, secure and reliable L1 blockchain that is Cardano, their potential to revolutionise how property is recorded, in almost every aspect of society becomes clear. That’s what motivates us to continue building around the technology of NFTs, even though the hype cycle may have ended, and especially to try and create easy to use, but powerful solutions that are freely available to anyone in the community.

Our aim with this proposal is to start building a library of easy to use and deploy tools accessible to any potential Cardano NFT creator. Our library will contain first and foremost a series of open source smart contracts, implementable by any developer that is familiar with Cardano. But we don’t want to stop there, our aim is to deliver much more than this standard approach - we want to create an easy to use, user friendly platform that will allow for the quick customisation, configuration and deployment of the contracts even by non-technical Cardano community members. In the process we want to substantially expand the reach of the solutions we develop by making them accessible to a much wider range of creators and projects that could benefit from them. 

The NFT Guild has already developed a very similar tool for the effortless deployment of a configurable smart contract as part of our Swap Pools project demo iteration. The Swap Pools admin panel enables even non-technical users to deploy smart contracts with custom settings and parameters - this allows for the needs of each project and the desire of each creator to be represented on-chain.

Please check it out: https://nftswap.stakepoolcentral.com:11998/admin# 

We have identified multiple basic needs of the Cardano NFT community that are currently only met by centralised third-party entities or not at all. There are a few open source smart contracts for some tasks, like NFT fractionalisation, but these are inaccessible to non-technical creators.

We have identified four areas of interest that we want to focus on initially. We have split these over two F12 proposals.

So, in short, in addition to creating a well documented, open source smart contract library, we will develop a user-friendly UX & UI that will enable all creators to deploy personalised smart contracts for their collections for a variety of common needs.

The use cases that we want to focus for now are:

1. Conditional Unlocks and Airdrops for Token Holders

2. Customisable Escrow

3. Auto Royalty Splitting & Royalties Donation

4. Burning Smart Contract (with customisable upgrade mechanics).

Developing the last two use cases is the focus of this proposal.

Auto Royalty Splitting & Royalties Donation

We aim to create an easy to use web solution that deploys a completely configurable royalty fractionalisation smart contract on mainnet and outputs a single address for royalties that can then be used in the royalties token, according to CIP-27. The smart contract would receive the royalty payments from marketplaces, and, at set intervals, validate the payment of royalties to the addresses that hold the royalty token fractions.

This would essentially allow for the royalties to be “updatable” over time as the token fractions can be moved between wallets. Such an arrangement would make it extremely easy for a collection creator to pledge all or part of their royalties to a cause and have everything 100% verifiable on-chain.

Burning/Minting Smart Contract (w/ customisable upgrade mechanics)

A smart contract that irretrievably locks tokens (fungible or non-fungible), essentially burning them. Such a contract can be useful in a variety of situations, however one use case that stands out is the creation of an “NFT upgrade mechanic” where multiple tokens can be locked in the contract and new, upgraded ones, minted in their place, according to customisable logic. In addition, as part of the demo dApp we will create a way to visualise in real time the updated total supply of the collection, accounting for all the tokens locked in the burning contract(s). In the future we even envision the creation of a new standard that would allow wallets and chain explorers to also display the updated supply.

These use cases not only solve existing problems but also open up new possibilities for creative expression and commercial activity on Cardano.

Our solution is unique in its combination of open-source smart contracts and an intuitive user interface designed specifically for non-technical creators. This approach will significantly lower the barrier to entry for creators on Cardano, enabling a broader range of individuals to participate in the ecosystem by democratizing access to powerful tools.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

Our project has the potential to enhance the Cardano ecosystem, by providing creators with the tools needed to make use of smart contract technology in a user-friendly way. Non-technical creators will gain the power to implement sophisticated NFT features that were previously out of reach, leading to more innovative and engaging projects.

By lowering technical barriers, a broader range of creators can innovate and implement complex functions in their projects. At the same time, customizable smart contracts for royalties and burning will lead to more dynamic interactions between creators and token holders, potentially increasing network activity.

Sharing Outputs and Opportunities

• Our smart contract code will be publicly available on GitHub for community review, use, and contribution.
• We will create comprehensive documentation and tutorials to help users understand and utilize our tools effectively.
• We will make announcements on our social media channels promoting the development of the smart contracts and tools.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

The NFT Guild is dedicated to developing standards and building tools for the Cardano NFT community.

Founded by the Cardano Foundation in November 2021, the NFT Guild is now spearheaded by dedicated Cardano community members. Our team stands out because of its diversity, boasting a range of backgrounds and areas of expertise that include developers, stake pool operators (SPOs), artists, NFT project creators, community managers, and organizers. We have a proven track record of delivering successful projects and tools for the Cardano community. Most notably, our Swap Pools project demonstrates our ability to create user-friendly UI for complex smart contract interactions.

Additionally, our team has successfully completed and closed out multiple NFT focused proposals from Catalyst Fund 8 and 9. This experience has equipped us with the project management skills, technical expertise, and community engagement strategies necessary to deliver high-quality results within budget and on schedule.

We have robust processes in place to ensure proper management and accountability of funds. We have created a dedicated system for tracking the contributions of each guild member. All fund movements are transparently tracked in dedicated channels in our Discord server: https://discord.gg/7HCxDryPHk 

Our operations are transparent, and we maintain an open line of communication with the community and stakeholders at all times. This approach has earned us the trust of the Cardano community, and we remain committed to maintaining these high standards on this new project.

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1 - (Month 1 & 2) User Stories & Research for 1st Use Case

Milestone Outputs:

• User stories and use-cases for 1st use case.
• Research into the high level implementation for 1st use case.

Acceptance Criteria:

• Completion of user stories for 1st use case.
• Research document is completed.

Evidence of milestone completion:

• Link to the document containing detailed user stories for 1st use case.
• Link to the research document for 1st use case.

Milestone 2 - (Month 3) Development of UX/UI and Smart Contract Specs Completion for 1st Use Case

Outputs:

• Design the front-end user interface (UI) based on the user stories
• Develop the front-end code according to the UI/UX design.
• Completion of the specifications for the smart contract.
• Development of the initial and untested version of the full web dapp code.
• 
  

Acceptance Criteria:

• Completion of UI/UX design.
• Front-end code has been developed.
• Completed specifications document for the smart contract.
• The dapp code is published to the project’s GitHub page.

Evidence of Milestone Completion:

• A link to a video demo of the UI design.
• The front-end code that integrates with the back-end system will be posted to the project’s GitHub page.
• A link to the project GitHub repository that will contain the newly developed dapp code along with documentation outlining the architecture and design decisions.
• A link to a document containing the final specifications for the smart contract.

Milestone 3 - (Month 4&5) Development, Testing & Integration

Milestone Outputs:

• Design the smart contract and validator architecture, incorporating the findings from the research report.
• Develop and publish the open-source smart contract code.
• Conduct UI/UX usability testing and iterate based on potential feedback.
• Integration of the smart contract code into the dapp completed.
• Conduct comprehensive testing to ensure code correctness of open-source dapp and smart contract code.
• Finalise comprehensive documentation for the smart contract code and all integration aspects of the project.
• Deploy a demo project on Cardano mainnet.
• Promote the project to the Cardano community on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.
• Monitor usage and feedback for potential improvements.

Acceptance Criteria:

• The smart contract design and code is published to an open-source repository on GitHub.
• Successful tests with no critical issues.
• Documentation is available for review by the milestone reviewers and the wider Cardano community.
• Usability feedback has been solicited from the community.
• Successful project deployment with no critical issues.
• Successful promotion activities on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.
• Usage and feedback document compiled.

Evidence of milestone completion:

• A link to the initial smart contract code submitted to the project’s GitHub
• A link to the section of the project’s open-source GitHub repo pointing to relevant documentation.
• Links to the usability research form used to solicit feedback from the community and potentially a link to a document that compiles relevant findings.
• The results of the tests will be published to the project repository and linked.
• Comprehensive documentation for the project will be published to the project’s GitHub repository.
• Cardano mainnet tx. IDs demonstrating succesful smart contract usage.
• Screenshots demonstrating that the project has been promoted to the Cardano community on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.

Milestone 4 - (Month 6 & 7) User Stories & Research for 2nd Use Case

Milestone Outputs:

• User stories and use-cases for 1st use case.
• Research into the high level implementation for 1st use case.

Acceptance Criteria:

• Completion of user stories for 1st use case.
• Research document is completed.

Evidence of milestone completion:

• Link to the document containing detailed user stories for 1st use case.
• Link to the research document for 1st use case.

Milestone 5 - (Month 8) Development of UX/UI and Smart Contract Specs Completion for 2nd Use Case

Outputs:

• Design the front-end user interface (UI) based on the user stories
• Develop the front-end code according to the UI/UX design.
• Completion of the specifications for the smart contract.
• Development of the initial and untested version of the full web dapp code.
• 
  

Acceptance Criteria:

• Completion of UI/UX design.
• Front-end code has been developed.
• Completed specifications document for the smart contract.
• The dapp code is published to the project’s GitHub page.

Evidence of Milestone Completion:

• A link to a video demo of the UI design.
• The front-end code that integrates with the back-end system will be posted to the project’s GitHub page.
• A link to the project GitHub repository that will contain the newly developed dapp code along with documentation outlining the architecture and design decisions.
• A link to a document containing the final specifications for the smart contract.

Milestone 6 - (Month 9 & 10) Development, Testing & Integration for 2nd Use Case

Milestone Outputs:

• Design the smart contract and validator architecture, incorporating the findings from the research report.
• Develop and publish the open-source smart contract code.
• Conduct UI/UX usability testing and iterate based on potential feedback.
• Integration of the smart contract code into the dapp completed.
• Conduct comprehensive testing to ensure code correctness of open-source dapp and smart contract code.
• Finalise comprehensive documentation for the smart contract code and all integration aspects of the project.
• Deploy a demo project on Cardano mainnet.
• Promote the project to the Cardano community on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.
• Monitor usage and feedback for potential improvements.
• Produce and submit the project close-out report and video.

Acceptance Criteria:

• The smart contract design and code is published to an open-source repository on GitHub.
• Successful tests with no critical issues.
• Documentation is available for review by the milestone reviewers and the wider Cardano community.
• Usability feedback has been solicited from the community.
• Successful project deployment with no critical issues.
• Successful promotion activities on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.
• Usage and feedback document compiled.
• The project close-out report and video have been submitted.

Evidence of milestone completion:

• A link to the initial smart contract code submitted to the project’s GitHub
• A link to the section of the project’s open-source GitHub repo pointing to relevant documentation.
• Links to the usability research form used to solicit feedback from the community and potentially a link to a document that compiles relevant findings.
• The results of the tests will be published to the project repository and linked.
• Comprehensive documentation for the project will be published to the project’s GitHub repository.
• Cardano mainnet tx. IDs demonstrating succesful smart contract usage.
• Screenshots demonstrating that the project has been promoted to the Cardano community on Twitter, Discord and YouTube.
• Links to a comprehensive project close-out report and video.

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

The NFT Guild core team is a global team comprised of individuals with a diverse set of skills and backgrounds. Our members are spread across various time zones and can offer a broad range of expertise in Cardano and NFTs, covering areas like development, stake pool operations, art, NFT project creation, community management, organization and project Catalyst.

The NFT Guild Core members working on this project are:

CENT

https://github.com/cent-development

Stake Pool operator of the pool CENT since December 2019. 20 years of experience in software development. Creator of the community tool Cardano Blockchain Intelligence. Graduate of the Plutus Pioneers Program cohort 1, 2021. Project Catalyst funded proposer since F6. 

Anamaria Kövesdi (New Mindflow)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/anamaria-k%C3%B6vesdi-354649106/

Rares Kövesdi (New Mindflow)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rares-k%C3%B6vesdi-551260106/

New Mindflow [https://www.newmindflow.com] are:

Artists and entrepreneurs, in the Cardano NFT space since Day 1. Creators of the Trybbles & Icons Cardano NFT projects. Cardano Project Catalyst funded proposers. Members in various Cardano & Catalyst projects, initiatives & communities over the past 2 and a half years.

Award-winning filmmakers, film and animation directors, app and game developers.

In January 2021 they moved into the web3 economy granting new life to one of their projects in the form of an NFT collection on Cardano.

Since then they have released multiple art NFT collections on Cardano, and have been involved in multiple NFT and Cardano related groups and organisations, most notably being core members of the NFT Guild.

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Development Costs

1. Research + Report drafting
2. Smart Contract code
3. Testing
4. Web front-end
5. Documentation of contracts and instructions on how to build
6. Documentation of how to build, install and configure web front end

Total cost for development and documentation: 116000 ADA

Project Management, UX, UI and Misc. Costs

1. Project Management
2. Market Research
3. Testing and code documentation verification
4. User Stories
5. UI Design
6. Marketing
7. Administration

Total Project Management, UX, UI and Misc: 74000 ADA

Contingency Budget: 9800 ADA

Project Total: 199800 ADA

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

We have carefully evaluated the costs associated with each aspect of this project. Our team members have experience in the Cardano ecosystem and have successfully delivered previous projects within budget constraints. The provided rates are in line with industry standards for Cardano blockchain developers. Additionally, our developer is based in Norway, one of the most expensive countries in the world, and this also has to be reflected in our cost structure. The funding will be allocated across development milestones, ensuring the efficient creation and deployment of our open-source tools and user-friendly platform. 

By opting for the open-source principles, we are able to increase the impact of our funding and ensure the long-term sustainability of the project. The tools and resources we create will be freely available to the entire Cardano community, generating a positive, long-lasting impact on the ecosystem as a whole.

By considering the long-term benefits and the potential for widespread adoption, we believe our proposal represents a very good value for money for the Cardano ecosystem.