Sony’s Soneium Blockchain Freezes Memecoins, Sparks Outrage

The trouble began early Tuesday when Sony froze two popular memecoins, Aibo and Toro. This move cost investors thousands of dollars.

At around 4 a.m. London time, users in Soneium’s Discord began reporting that they could no longer trade the tokens.

Sony Cites IP Violations in Freezing Aibo and Toro Tokens

On Blockscout’s Soneium explorer, a tool for tracking blockchain activity, both coins were labeled “Forbidden,” with their transaction data completely wiped. The reason? Sony claims the coins violated its intellectual property (IP) rights. Aibo, named after Sony’s robotic dogs, had reached a market value of $2.7 million, while Toro, referencing Sony’s cat mascot Toro Inoue, had traded as high as $1.1 million.

“Measures were put in place to safeguard the rights of IP holders,” a spokesperson for Sony Block Solutions Labs (BSL), the firm behind Soneium, told DL News. “In cases where Sony’s IP was used without authorization, swift action was necessary to uphold our mission of protecting creators’ rights.”

A Unique Approach to Memecoins

Most blockchains, like Solana, embrace memecoins. Even if they parody copyrighted material because the viral buzz can bring more users to the network. But Sony is marching to the beat of its drum, prioritizing IP protection over potential memecoin mania.

This approach highlights Soneium’s centralized nature, allowing Sony to freeze any token at will—a stark contrast to decentralized blockchains, where shutting down a coin is nearly impossible due to anonymity and the lack of central authority.

Critics in the Soneium Discord accused Sony of “rugging” investors—a term that refers to a crypto project pulling the plug on its token. Often crashing its value to zero. While Sony didn’t profit from the freeze, the effect was the same: investors lost out big time.

A Crackdown with a Grace Period

Soneium’s crackdown caught users off guard, leaving many scratching their heads. In response, Sony BSL announced plans to implement a grace period for future blacklisting decisions. Developers will be warned. Also, given clear reasons and offered a chance to make adjustments before any tokens are frozen.

While Soneium aims to protect creators’ rights and foster fair profit-sharing, its centralized control is leaving some DeFi diehards feeling like fish out of water.

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