On August 2, West Realm Shire Services Inc., the owner and operator of FTX.US, revealed the company has partnered with film and television production company Dolphin Entertainment. According to the announcement, FTX and Dolphin will be launching a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace dedicated to sports and entertainment brands.

Dolphin Entertainment Partners With FTX.US

While non-fungible token collectibles continue to see demand, a slew of crypto firms revealed plans to launch NFT marketplaces this year. On Monday, Dolphinand FTX explained the two companies have joined forces to launch an NFT market that’s focused on sports and the entertainment industry.

Dolphin Entertainment is a Coral Gables, Florida-based company that specializes in film, television, and other forms of entertainment production. The company rose to prominence after producing a number of hit movies and shows. For instance, Dolphin is responsible for Nickelodeon’s “Zoey 101” and “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide.” Dolphin was behind Nickelodeon’s first-ever TV movie series “Shredderman Rules” as well.

The new partnership will see Dolphin handling the “creative branding, production, and marketing” with help from FTX. The trading platform “FTX will use their crypto exchange services and technical development as the backbone of the marketplaces,” the announcement hosted on variety.com discloses. Bill O’Dowd, CEO of Dolphin Entertainment, thinks purchasing non-fungible token assets today is cumbersome.

“Buying NFTs today is clunky,” O’Dowd said in a statement. “To be able to offer a seamless user experience, where the wallet and the product are all in one place; to allow the consumer to pay with crypto, credit card or traditional currency; to have the product available on wholly-owned and programmed online destinations; to have the same product available for purchase directly in-app; and to also have actual customer support, when necessary, are enormous differentiating factors that FTX provides.”

O’Dowd mentioned that Dolphin has quite the reach when it comes to accessing and developing alliances in sports, film, television, gaming, esports, culinary, and music. The Dolphin CEO claimed the joint productions between FTX and the entertainment company will be “distinct from the rest of the market.” O’Dowd added:

Most importantly, immediately put NFTs on a level playing field with all other consumer products available for purchase online.

Planned NFT Marketplace Faces Stiff Competition, FTX.US President Think’s Dolphin’s Pop Culture-Reach Will Bolster the Venture

Despite the claims, the Dolphin and FTX partnership has a lot of competition to deal with when it joins the NFT fray. At the end of March, Crypto.com launched an NFT marketplace featuring collectibles from Lionel Ritchie and Snoop Dogg. There are also existing marketplaces like Mintable, Makersplace, Nifty Gateway, Block Party, Rarible, Superrare, and Opensea. Many of these firms have recently raised millions of dollars in seed rounds as well. Brett Harrison, the president of FTX.US believes Dolphin’s wide entertainment experience and acumen will give the project an edge.

“Dolphin’s reach and scale across all of pop culture is very impressive to us,” Harrison said. “We are excited to build marketplaces with Dolphin, both because of their ability to access content and IP, but also because they are leaders in public relations and influencer marketing for every major vertical of entertainment. With that said, there are several items on the horizon that we can’t wait to launch together.”