Somnium Space is auctioning off parcels in their immensely popular Road to Secondary Land Offering (Road to SLO), a 10 week campaign during which 25 parcels are auctioned each week; a total of 250 parcels.
The first 3 weeks have passed and they were all very successful with sales of 110 ETH, 70 ETH and 95 ETH respectively. Somnium Space parcels are some of the hottest NFT’s that are on the market right now.
But there’s another Somnium asset that tops the charts in terms of value: The Teleportation Hub. A Limited ILO Edition Teleportation Hub sold for 15 ETH (USD 2.250 at the time of writing) the other day. An Indiegogo Founders Edition for 23 ETH (USD 3.450 at the time of writing). Phenomenal amounts. Apart from a few XL parcels on the main island maybe, no Somnium assets has been sold for more.
Those who have a Teleportation Hub walk around with a twinkle in their eyes, one of deep satisfaction. Or amusement, as if they hold on to a secret you and I will never know. People who do not have one dream about having one, but their facial expression reveals resignation. Unless you are willing to dig very deep into your pocket (or rather wallet) it is hard to get a Somnium Teleportation Hub these days.
Why is that? Is there a secret? Not at all.
There are a number of factors that have caused the value of Teleportation Hubs to skyrocket. First of all, there is limited supply. While there are 5000 parcels, there are only 25 ILO Edition Teleportation Hubs for example (and another 25 Indiegogo Founders Edition Hubs). Now, limited supply is in and of itself not sufficient to drive the price up. But functionality is what makes them so special.
A very interesting feature of Somnium Space is that transport is going to be a real thing; it takes (real) time to move from A to B. This is a conscious choice of Somnium Space. If it takes time to move from one place to another you enhance the sense of space and hence the immersive feeling. It comes at a price, however, which is that if you own land far away from Somnium Waypoint, people who spawn into Somnium will have a harder time to get to your parcel.
That’s where the Somnium transportation system comes in. Over time we’ll most likely see the emergence of different modes of transport (apart from walking), but one thing is certain: Teleportation Hubs will be one of them.
It doesn’t mean you can freely teleport between places on the Somnium map. Instead, those who own a Teleportation Hub can place them on one of their parcels. Multiple hubs will form a network. Then, if you want to go from – let’s say Somnium Waypoint to a specific parcel – you find the nearest parcel that has a Teleportation Hub and then jump to a hub nearest your destination.
Using a Teleportation Hub is not going to be free for those who use it and this is why they are in such demand. If you own one, you become part of the Somnium Transportation System and will earn a share of the revenue your hub generates.
If you do not own one, you can get to any place on the Somnium map within 10 minutes of walking. It’s a great joy! But if you want to go faster, go to a Teleportation Hub, pay a few Cubes (Somnium’s in-world currency) and you can bridge large distances in an instant. This will be especially interesting for those who setup businesses and venues and want to give customers and visitors a shortcut to their parcels.
Time will tell whether 15 ETH and 23 ETH for Teleportation Hubs are good investments, but hubs are not mere collectibles. They’re going to have real value in an ever growing virtual world with ever growing needs. Some of those needs will be of logistical nature. People will want to move around fast.
And they will be willing to pay a fee for that, just like in the real world.
See you in Somnium!
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