Geoffrey Huntley, an Australian software developer, has rolled out an online repository of NFTs. A report unveiled this news earlier today, noting the archive is dubbed The NFT Bay and comprises JPEG versions of NFTs. Huntley launched the 17.96TB repository 15 hours ago, and it has since attracted over 1.2 million visits.
According to the report, The NFT Bay website has the same layout and logo as Pirate Bay, a torrent website that lets users download pirated films, video games, music, and other media. With The NFT Bay, NFT enthusiasts can download JPEG copies of NFTs.
Explaining why he decided to create The NFT Bay, Huntley said it is an educational art project. He added that he hopes people can learn and understand what they are buying by embracing NFTs through the website. The NFT skeptic further noted that purchasing NFTs, at the moment, involves buying directions on how to access or download an image.
Many people do not understand NFTs fully
According to Huntley, the concept of web3 is quite brilliant. However, the average person does not fully understand the workings of an NFT, seeing as they think they are purchasing a JPEG image instead of the unique blockchain token associated with the image. He added that people are exploiting this lack of knowledge and awareness to rip off others.
Huntley went on to note that,
The image is not stored on the blockchain and the majority of images I’ve seen are hosted on web2.0 storage which is likely to end up as 404 meaning the NFT has even less value.
The NFT Bay got the attention of other NFT bashers, who praised the project online. An example is UK-based software developer Drew Hess, who said the torrent might serve to disillusion anyone that believes NFTs have inherent value.
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","restrictedCountries":["CA","MX"],"attributes":{},"tableRowLabel":""}],"displayAttributes":[]}"}The blockchain is just a single piece of Web3
However, Steve Mitobe, the founder and CEO of NFT development agency WestCoastNFT, disagrees with Huntley. Mitobe pointed out that the standard for most NFTs is to use decentralized network storage technology like InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) and Arweave.
He added that these systems make the metadata recoverable or permanent, meaning it is not dependent on a single point of failure, such as a 404 error. Mitobe corrected Huntley, saying web3 infrastructure comprises many different parts, including peer-to-peer storage systems. According to him, the blockchain is just one piece of the Web3 puzzle.
