RTFKT, Nike’s Web3 Arm, Acquires dotswoosh.eth ENS for 19.72 ETH

RTFKT, the Web3 company of Nike, recently bought the dotswoosh.eth Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domain for 19.72 ETH (around $35,000). Following the purchase, the company now owns 10 Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domains alongside artifacts.eth, rtfkt.eth, skinvial.eth, drmos.eth, mintvial.eth, dreamos.eth, spacedrip.eth, dripcoin.eth, and m2tekno.eth.

The reason for the purchase is yet to be disclosed, but some users have suggested that this could allow both Nike and RTFKT to issue ENS subdomains down the line. This will enable certain holders of digital assets — NFTs, cryptocurrency, etc. — to register an ENS subdomain under dotswoosh.eth. The purchase price also has some relevance, particularly since 1972 was the year graphic designer Carolyn Davidson’s swoosh logo first debuted on Nike’s shoes.

Nike protects its projects through the purchase of these ENS domains. Mint Vial (mintvial.eth), for instance, is a reference to Mint Vial Ethereum NFTs — under RTFKT’s collections — which may be burned to create a unique CloneX avatar NFT. Space Drip (spacedrip.eth), on the other hand, is another one of Nike’s digital sneaker projects. Finally, Skin Vials (skinvial.eth) are also NFTs that enable users to change the appearance of RTFKT CryptoKicks.

Earlier in May, it was revealed that RTFKT and Nike are set to release an official virtual and physical apparel collection. This is expected to integrate most of Nike’s recent metaverse projects allowing users to own “forged” physical versions of the outfits that their “clones” or virtual avatars are wearing. Hence, the purchase of various ENS domains might also play a role in this upcoming consolidation of the virtual and the physical.

Sources: Decrypt, Hypebeast