Star Trek Announce NFTs, Trekkies Push Back

Paramount and RECUR are launching a new Star Trek-themed NFT collection, and many Trekkies are already calling for them to abort the mission.

If anything was ever going to evoke a Picard-style facepalm from Trekkies, it’s the news that Star Trek is making its first contact with NFTs. According to an article posted on StarTrek.com, fans will be able to access “digital collectibles” starting April 9 through Paramount.xyz, a new online portal that houses NFT drops for some of Paramount’s beloved IP and franchises.

“Fans are looking for new ways to engage with their favorite shows and franchises, and our innovative ecosystem gives them a community to be a part of for years to come,” said Zach Bruch, RECUR CEO. “Through the introduction of Paramount.xyz and StarTrek.xyz, we’re providing fans with a unique way to embark on a journey to boldly go into the metaverse.”

“Fans should be able to engage with our content wherever they are, including the metaverse,” Pam Kaufman, President of Global Consumer Products and Experiences at Paramount, added about the company’s latest venture. “Paramount.xyz will offer one seamless digital collectible experience for fans across our key franchises, starting with Star Trek.”

Star Trek will be the first franchise to launch on the portal, with collectibles available in the “Star Trek Continuum” hub. The Season 0 drop on April 9 will feature “algorithmically-generated starships” that can be purchased for $250 per pack. There will be 20,000 Starship packs available in the 24-hour sale, and no two ships will be the same.

Paramount’s fan-focused platform is said to be a space for people to “build a community, engage with peers, and unlock new, innovative and interactive experiences with properties and brands they love” as part of a “unified environment where fans can buy, collect and trade NFTs as digital collectibles,” but not everyone is on board with the idea.

Fleets of Trekkies have taken to social media to voice their opinions on the Star Trek NFT announcement, with many berating the decision for being “out of touch” and “going against every Trek principle” as people have struggled to find an association between Star Trek and NFTs, considering that the former prides itself on demonstrating an eco-conscious ethos.

NFTs and cryptocurrencies have seen a massive wave of attention in the tech space in the last year, and continue to be controversial subjects. They are largely unregulated entities often exploited for scam purposes and have been accused of having a huge negative impact on the environment due to the energy consumed during the electronic mining of currency.

As a result, some fans have been left feeling alienated by the announcement of the NFT Star Trek collection, which comes at a time when Trekkies were gearing up to boldly step into another adventure aboard the USS Enterprise with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. This new series is debuting on Paramount+ on May 5, with new episodes every Thursday after that.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.