OpenSea, Rarible or Foundation? Legal differences of NFT platforms. Where to trade?

Publication date: March 01, 2023

As the popularity of NFT continues to grow, more and more people are buying and selling these unique digital assets on various platforms. However, as with any online transaction, there are important privacy considerations to keep in mind. It is important that NFT buyers and sellers understand how their personal information is collected, used and shared by the platforms they use.

The registration process on the platforms may vary and require additional verification by the registrant. The Foundation, for example, requires sellers to verify their account before they can sell NFTs, while OpenSea and Rarible do not have a verification process.

For transaction taxes, you must self-assess on all three platforms. Buyers and sellers are responsible for complying with local tax laws. OpenSea, Rarible and the Foundation do not collect or transfer taxes on behalf of users. Each of these platforms also has a notice of intellectual property infringement and has a disclaimer that prohibits the sale of infringing content and has a DMCA takedown policy to protect intellectual property rights. For additional fees charged during checkout, OpenSea and Rarible charge a fee of 2.5% on all sales, which is deducted from the seller’s income. In the case of the Foundation, it is a fee of 10% of all sales.

When licensing content on these three platforms, the user who purchases NFT receives a crypto token representing the creator’s artistic content as part of the ownership, but does not own the artistic content itself or any intellectual property rights, can view and share the artistic content, but (the buyer) has no proprietary rights, other rights in connection with purchase, or title to any copyrights, trademarks, or other intellectual property rights in the Art Content, except for the Limited License to Art Content granted. This license, according to the regulations, includes a limited, worldwide, non-transferable (except for sale or transfer to another purchaser), royalty-free license to display the artistic content constituting the basis of such digital work for non-commercial purposes only (purchaser). It is worth noting that in the case of the Foundation platform, the platform’s terms of service state that by using the platform, the creators grant the platform a non-exclusive license to use, copy, modify and distribute their content for promotional purposes. However, this license is limited to the extent necessary to operate and promote the platform and does not give the Foundation ownership rights to the content.

The terms of use for these platforms also state that the platform does not guarantee the authenticity or quality of any NFTs bought or sold on the platform, and users are responsible for their own research in this regard before making any transactions.

Auctions conducted on platforms may also vary. With Rarible, sellers can set a minimum price for their auctions and choose how long their NFTs will be listed for sale, while OpenSea and Foundation have fixed auction durations and do not allow reserve prices.

Transactions carried out on these platforms are made using cryptocurrencies. In the case of the OpenSea and Rarible platforms, the transaction is very similar. When we buy NFT on OpenSea or Rarible, we will see a detailed breakdown of the transaction on the website, including the price paid, any fees charged, and Ethereum gas fees. We will also receive an email confirmation with the above-mentioned information. In addition, the seller will be notified of the purchase and the NFT will be credited to your wallet upon completion of the transaction. In the case of Foundation, the transaction looks a bit different. When we make an offer to buy NFT, the seller has the option to accept, counter or reject the offer. If your offer is accepted, we’ll receive an email notification with a link to complete your purchase. From there, you’ll be redirected to a page where you can confirm transaction details, including price, fees, and gas costs. After confirming the purchase, the NFT will be transferred to our wallet. In the case of OpenSea and Rarible, we can use various cryptocurrencies to buy, while on the Foundation platform we can only buy with Etherum. It is worth noting that we can currently purchase NFT with a credit card on the OpenSea and Rarible platforms. However, this practice is rarely used by buyers as using a credit card to purchase NFTs may incur higher fees and may not be available in all countries or jurisdictions. In addition, credit card payments may be subject to additional identity verification requirements and may not be as secure as cryptocurrency payments.

In the case of the privacy policy, OpenSea is very specific in this regard and sets out how the platform collects, uses and shares personal data, as well as the rights of users to access and control their data. OpenSea also uses cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your user experience and deliver personalized content and advertising. Rarible’s privacy policy is similar in scope and covers the collection, use and sharing of personal information as well as the use of cookies and tracking technologies. However, Rarible’s policy is less detailed and does not provide as much information about how the platform uses data. In contrast, Foundation’s privacy policy is more focused on user-generated content and intellectual property rights. The policy outlines how the platform collects and uses personal information related to the creation and sale of NFTs, and how user-generated content is protected by intellectual property rights.

All in all, when it comes to which platform is better to use, it depends on your individual needs and preferences. If the user is looking for a platform with a wider range of licensing options and more flexibility in terms of payment methods, OpenSea may be best choice. If the user is looking for a platform with a streamlined buying process, Foundation could be a good fit. However, if we are looking for a platform with a large user base and a wide range of NFTs available, Rarible may be the best option.