What is the royalty mechanism of NFT projects? How to affect returns?

NFT royalty mechanisms let creators earn ongoing income from secondary sales, but inconsistent platform enforcement and bypass tactics challenge their effectiveness.

Jun 22, 2025 at 01:21 pm

Understanding the Royalty Mechanism in NFT Projects

The royalty mechanism in NFT projects refers to a system that allows creators to earn a percentage of sales every time their NFTs are resold on secondary marketplaces. Unlike traditional art or digital content markets, where artists typically only profit from the initial sale, NFTs enable ongoing compensation through smart contracts.

This mechanism is coded directly into the smart contract of the NFT during its minting process. When an artist or creator sets up their NFT collection, they can specify a royalty rate — usually between 1% and 10%. Every time an NFT from that collection is sold on a marketplace like OpenSea, LooksRare, or Blur, the original creator receives the agreed-upon percentage automatically.

How Royalties Are Enforced Across Platforms

Not all NFT marketplaces enforce royalties equally. Some platforms respect the royalty settings embedded in the NFT's smart contract, while others allow buyers and sellers to bypass them entirely. This inconsistency has led to debates within the NFT community about the effectiveness and fairness of royalty enforcement.

• Marketplaces such as LooksRare and X2Y2 historically honored royalty payments unless users chose alternative routes.
• OpenSea, one of the largest NFT marketplaces, shifted toward optional royalties after introducing its "token-gated" listings feature.
• Newer platforms like Blur have taken a user-centric approach by allowing traders to avoid paying royalties altogether.

This variability affects how consistently creators receive ongoing income from their work.

Impact of Royalties on Creator Revenue

For creators, the royalty mechanism significantly enhances long-term earnings potential. If an NFT appreciates in value over time and is frequently traded, the original creator continues to benefit financially. This model aligns with real-world scenarios like music royalties or book residuals, but now applied to digital collectibles, artwork, and metaverse assets.

For example:

• An artist sells an NFT for 0.5 ETH initially and sets a 5% royalty.
• The NFT is later resold for 2 ETH, generating the artist 0.1 ETH in passive income.
• If it changes hands multiple times, the cumulative royalty payments can surpass the initial sale amount.

This dynamic encourages high-quality creation and incentivizes artists to build strong communities around their work.

Effect of Royalty Mechanisms on Secondary Market Activity

While beneficial to creators, the presence of royalties can influence buyer behavior and trading volume. Collectors may be hesitant to purchase NFTs with high royalty rates if they plan to flip them quickly, as this reduces their net profit margin.

Some collectors argue that high royalty percentages place an unfair burden on secondary buyers, especially when resales occur frequently. In contrast, others support the system as a way to sustain artistic innovation and fair compensation.

Market trends show that collections with reasonable royalty structures tend to maintain healthier liquidity and broader adoption across marketplaces.

Royalty Bypass Techniques and Their Implications

With the rise of no-royalty marketplaces, some users exploit mechanisms to bypass royalty payments. One common method involves wrapping NFTs using protocols like Seaport Pro or Immutable X, which obscure the original creator’s royalty instructions.

Other strategies include:

• Using cross-chain bridges to transfer NFTs to blockchains where royalty enforcement isn't standard.
• Minting derivative versions of popular NFTs to circumvent original creator royalties.

These practices raise legal and ethical concerns. While technically feasible, they challenge the intended purpose of the royalty system and can erode trust in NFT ecosystems.

Choosing the Right Royalty Strategy for Your Project

When launching an NFT project, setting the appropriate royalty percentage requires strategic thinking. Too high, and it might deter secondary market activity; too low, and it could undermine the creator’s long-term revenue.

Factors to consider include:

• The popularity and demand for similar NFTs
• The community-building efforts behind the project
• The reputation and track record of the creator

Creators should also research which marketplaces support royalty enforcement and whether their target audience prefers platforms with or without mandatory royalties.

Additionally, transparency is key. Clearly communicating the royalty structure helps build trust and ensures collectors understand what they're supporting when they buy into a project.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Can I change the royalty percentage after my NFTs are minted?

A: Most NFT smart contracts do not allow changing the royalty rate post-minting. It's crucial to set the desired percentage before deployment.

Q: Do all blockchains support royalty mechanisms?

A: No. Ethereum-based NFTs support royalties via EIP-2981 standards, while other chains like Solana or Polygon may have different implementations or lack native royalty support.

Q: What happens if a marketplace doesn’t honor royalties?

A: Creators lose out on passive income from secondary sales. Some creators choose to launch exclusively on platforms that enforce royalties to protect their revenue streams.

Q: Are there legal protections for NFT creators regarding royalties?

A: Legal frameworks are still evolving. Currently, royalty enforcement relies more on platform policies than legal mandates, though discussions around intellectual property rights continue.