The source code that makes the Web world is about to be auctioned as NFT, starting at 1,000 USD

The first lines of code that made up the World Wide Web in 1989 are being sold by their creator, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, as an NFT (nonfungible token) through auction house Sotheby’s.

NFT is a form of cryptocurrency that is placed on smart contract platforms, usually Ethereum. Unlike the interchangeable units of Bitcoin or Ethereum, each NFT is a completely different unit. They thus create a niche market for digital art or virtual items that are collectible and often sell for hefty prices.

Sir Tim Berners-Lee and the lines of code that changed human history

With the NFT suite for the source code that makes up the web today, auction house Sotheby’s says it will consist of four parts: ” original timestamped files containing source code written by Mr. Tim (9,555 lines of code long) ), a 30-minute animation of the code being written, a letter written by Mr. Tim about the code and its creation, as well as a video presentation of the entire code. Mr. Tim uses Python to create, including an image for his actual signature .”

Berners-Lee said in his statement: ” Three decades ago, I created something, then with the help of a huge number of collaborators around the world, it became into a powerful tool for mankind… NFTs, whether works of art or digital collectibles, are the most exciting creations of the field and a suitable means of ownership. They’re the ideal way to encapsulate the origin behind the web .”

The auction of these NFTs will be held on June 23, with prices starting from $1,000. But with recent popular NFTs often selling for millions of dollars, Mr. Berners-Lee’s NFT for WWW work could easily have reached much higher figures.

According to auction house Sotheby’s, the proceeds from this NFT auction will support initiatives that Mr Berners-Lee and his wife, Rosemary Leith Berners-Lee, support.

Sir Berners-Lee never copyrighted his creations on the world wide web and the first browser was also freely open source to the public. With his wife, Mr. Berners-Lee is on the board of the World Wide Web Consortium, which they co-founded in 2009. The organization was created to promote the open web as a public good. and is a fundamental right.

Refer to Mashable