Why Mastercard’s CMO is bullish on Web3

At the helm of the program is chief marketing and communications officer Raja Rajamannar. Tools like NFTs, he told Ad Age at CES, can help artists achieve scale at critical junctures in their career. This is why the accelerator will kick off in the spring with a Music Pass NFT, which will allow fans to learn alongside the artists through educational materials and metaverse experiences.

The notion that Web3 offers a more democratized system for creators has been a major selling point for various projects and investments. But a year’s worth of experimentation has shown that it isn’t that simple. Creator royalties on NFT sales, for instance, was cast into doubt last fall when marketplaces abruptly stopped honoring them. As with many applications based on blockchain technology, royalties are difficult to enforce, especially when they hurt profits for young companies.

Rajamannar sees established companies striking reliable partnerships as a solution to this problem. For its accelerator, Mastercard has teamed with Polygon Studios, a subsidiary of the enterprise that founded the Polygon blockchain, which will help build out the technical side of the program. Together, the two entities will enforce royalties, Rajamannar said—a pledge that Mastercard can afford to make given its strength as a business.