Nike’s RTFKT Purchases “Dotswoosh.eth” Domain Name

RTFKT Studios, which is owned by Nike, has added another ".eth" domain name to its increasing roster of Ethereum Name Service (ENS) NFTs, bringing its total number of ENS domains to ten with the purchase of dotswoosh.eth for 19.72 ETH ($35,000).

The reason for Nike's dotswoosh acquisition on Friday is yet unknown. However, as some have speculated on Twitter, Nike may have intentions to use the domain in the future to issue ENS subdomains. Nike may, for example, allow holders of specific NFTs or other assets to register an ENS subdomain under dotswoosh.eth (kate.dotswoosh.eth would be one such example).

The "19.72 ETH" sale price is not a reference to Nike's "swoosh" symbol's history. Nike's iconic logo originally appeared on their sporting products in 1972. Nike's "swoosh" pattern might now be seen on the "dotswoosh.eth" NFT in RTFKT's OpenSea account.

Carolyn Davidson, a graphic designer, is said to have only been paid $35 for creating Nike's iconic swoosh logo in 1971. As a result, Nike's acquisition price of 19.72 ETH could be a reference to the year 1972, when Davidson's swoosh logo first appeared on shoes.

RTFKT now has ten ENS addresses, including "dotswoosh.eth." All of these NFTs are related to Nike or RTFKT's NFT projects in some way. "Skinvial.eth," for example, refers to "vial NFTs" that change the look of Nike's CryptoKicks NFT sneakers. ‘Artifacts.eth’, ‘RTFKT.eth’, ‘Drmos.eth’, ‘MintVial.eth’, ‘Dreamos.eth’, ‘SpaceDrip.eth’, ‘DripCoin.eth’, ‘M2tekno.eth, are among the eight remaining ENS domain names in RTFKT's inventory.

Nike has a record of purchasing and trademarking a wide range of affiliated names and logos, regardless of its plans for dotswoosh.eth. It filed trademarks for Nike, Nikeland, and "Just Do It," as well as its Nike swoosh and "Jumpman" logos, for a wide range of metaverse applications last year.