Disney Seeks Corporate Counsel for “Emerging Technologies” and NFTs

The Walt Disney Company may be on the verge of expanding into the crypto space after posting a new job for an “experienced corporate attorney” to work on “emerging technologies” such as non-fungible tokens (NFT) and Metaverse.

According to the Sept. 23 listing on Disney’s career website, the company is hiring a “Principal Counsel — Corporate Transactions, Emerging Technologies & NFTs” to work on transactions involving NFTs, Metaverse, blockchain and decentralized finance (DeFi).

Specifically, the entertainment conglomerate is seeking someone who can provide “full product lifecycle legal advice and support for global NFT products” and ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations on US soil and internationally.

Other duties include “due diligence for NFT, blockchain, third-party marketplace and cloud provider projects,” as well as providing regular legal advice on cryptocurrency-related matters, and digital currency and guiding Disney’s efforts in relation to new technologies.

The new role comes as The Walt Disney Company has been slowly positioning itself around the crypto, blockchain and Metaverse space.

During the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call in November 2021, CEO Bob Chapek said the firm was preparing to mix physical and digital assets in Metaverse.

Weeks later, the company filed a patent for a “virtual world simulator” referring to a potential theme park metaverse.

According to the patent application, Disney’s possible foray into the Metaverse could involve visitors to its theme parks using mobile phones to generate and project personal 3D effects onto nearby physical spaces, such as walls and other objects.

At the time it was reported, there were “no current plans” to use the “virtual-world simulator” patent, but the recent job posting could be a sign that this could change.

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Earlier this year, the company focused on augmented reality (AR), non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and artificial intelligence (AI) in the 2022 Disney Accelerator Program, which selected six “growth-stage” companies to benefit from its business development platform.

Companies selected for the program this year included tier-2 scaling platform Polygon, along with two other Web3 projects – Flickplay, a Web3 application that allows users to discover NFTs via augmented reality (AR), and Lockerverse, a Web3- storytelling platform that connects creators and brands.