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In 2022, Bored Ape creators Yuga Labs acquired the 
CryptoPunks IP. Later, they launched a "Punk in Residence" program to kick off a new series of artist collaborations.
Things went haywire when Yuga announced its first release here, Super Punk World by artist Nina Chanel Abney, on May 20th.
Salvos came in from all sides, with some 'Punks holders saying it was dilutive and the planned auctions seemed extractive, while others complained the drop's art was "too woke" (this complaint I found totally overblown, but it was out there).
Still, Yuga changed course fast, announcing they would mostly leave the 'Punks alone going forward and axing the SPW auction plans in favor of randomized airdrops to Abney's previous collectors.
Those airdrops went off without a hitch this week, the art revealed, and it seemed like the storm had blown over. Then word spread on Crypto Twitter that SPW's licensing indicated Yuga could legally pursue anyone who didn't pay a 6% royalty fee on resales.
Defensible or not, this licensing kicked off a new wave of controversy, even prompting longtime crypto veteran and CT darling Cobie to admit he recently asked Yuga if he could acquire the 'Punks IP from them (they declined).
Of course, a Cobie acquisition would've seen the 'Punks floor price shoot skyward in minutes. The community believes in him. They know he would leave the 'Punks alone.
In contrast, with trust in Yuga lower than it's been in years, it's now fair to wonder if the 'Punks can even hold a 30 ETH floor price for the near future.
To be sure, the 'Punks remain incredibly iconic and will endure any price action. However, Yuga hasn't done, er, the best job at fulfilling what everyone wants most here—staying hands-off.
This is why 'Punks are currently chopping between 30 ETH and 40 ETH and with the specter that the next breakout could be downward. For now, we'll have to wait and see what happens next, but uncertainty is certainly in the air.
📰 General news
- ENS intro'd ENSv2
- Ledger started shipping pre-ordered
Ledger Stax wallets
🎨 Cryptoart & music
- Amber Vittoria is dropping Feels on
Base on June 7th - die with the most likes released nameless dread on Art Blocks
- Highlight shipped ranked auctions
- Pleasr is loaning Wu-Tang Clan's rarest album to Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art
Zora plans to split any 
Optimism RetroPGF Rd. 4 rewards its may receive with its creators and users
🏆 Digital collectibles
- Blaze, an NFT creator platform on Blast, just launched
- Cool Cats extended the Clontest 2024 deadline to June 7th
- Pudgy Penguins passed 20 billion views on GIPHY
📱 Onchain social
- Orb is preparing to launch DIY clubs to everyone
Pacmoon launched its V2, featuring Social Validators- Warpcast intro'd email logins for web users
🎮 Decentralized gaming
- Axie Infinity launched the Origins S9 Preseason
- Illuvium kicked off its Open Beta Testnet
- NightMarket, an onchain esports betting platform, launched on Redstone
- OKX added support for
Immutable zkEVM - Parallel published a Parallel Colony video update
- Pirate Nation is concluding Season 1 of BOOTY points on June 10th
- Sky Strife completed its first season on mainnet
- Sorare unveiled its new Card Factory
🪙 NFTfi
- Gondi reached $100M in cumulative gross NFT loan originations
🌐 Virtual worlds
- Decentraland previewed the alpha of its new client
- The Sandbox launched a DAO
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