On Monday afternoons, as pointed out by Parker MolloyCNN ended its big Web3 project by announcing“we have decided that it’s time to say goodbye to the Vault by CNN.”
Vault by CNN shutdown results in “rug pull” accusations from NFT buyers
You may have already forgotten about it, but Vault by CNN launched in the summer of 2021 as a marketplace for its own NFTs (non-fungible tokens) that would “offer collectors the opportunity to own a piece of history.” Sort of like NBA Top Shot except for media nerds instead of basketball nerds, it minted CNN reports of key events or artistic interpretations inspired by them, creating digital collectibles that owners could show off somehow or trade with others, like baseball cards. This idea apparently seemed more reasonable while cryptocurrency prices were sky-high, and headlines about NFTs didn’t include phrases like “trading volumes collapse 97 percent since January peak.”
Things have obviously changed as the “crypto winter” settled in, although an April report by the Press Gazette said CNN had pulled in more than $300,000 from the sales.
Vault by CNN lasted 16 times as long as CNN Plus
In a Discord channel for the service, another message informed owners that while the Vault website will “undergo changes,” it will remain available for them to view their collections and use its marketplace. Reactions from the community included shock, disappointment, and a few posters saying they planned to contact their lawyers while accusing CNN of a “rug pull,” which in crypto terms applies when a development team
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