Today, we are breaking down Sky Mavis, the company behind the NFT-based game, Axie Infinity. Built by a team with a long history in gaming, Axie Infinity was launched in 2018 with the idea that a blockchain-based “play-to-earn” model could create more aligned incentives between game creators and game players long-term.   Axie is one of the most incredible examples of speed-to-scale I’ve seen, with the game reporting $100,000 of revenue in January, over $190,000,000 of revenue in July, and over $360,000,000 in August.   In this breakdown, we cover the basics of Axie and how gameplay is similar to classics such as Pokemon. We dive into the economic model, how Sky Mavis generates revenue, how players earn money, and how this is all enabled by the blockchain. We discuss the importance of gameplay vs. the economic ecosystem and examine the sustainability of Axie from various angles.   To help break down Sky Mavis, Patrick O’Shaughnessy is joined by Aleksander Larsen, co-founder of Sky Mavis, and Stephen McKeon, Partner at Collab+Currency, an early investor in Sky Mavis.   For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.   -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, Inc. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:03:00] - [First question] - How many people are playing Axie and how quickly it’s grown [00:04:03] - What play-to-earn means and how money flows through a digital ecosystem [00:05:03] - A basic overview of the user experience of playing Axie Infinity  [00:07:23] - What an Axie is, its features, how they’re generated, and how many exist [00:09:32] - Monster NFTs and the fungible SLP in-game currency [00:15:00] - Converting the SLP to fiat currency and how low-friction the process is [00:16:40] - Are people actually playing the game or just speculating on the game’s assets [00:23:14] - The AXS governance token, how to earn it, and what it enables for token holders [00:27:08] - What the opportunity set looks like for Axie from an investor standpoint [00:29:39] - Finding a balance between offering digital work and creating a player incentive  [00:33:29] - Mystic Axie and what they are generally worth today [00:34:42] - How much the community will have to expand and build on top of the game [00:38:48] - Overview of the plots of land in the Axie metaverse and what they might unlock  [00:41:57] - What a sidechain is and how the Ronin wallet works  [00:46:41] - Why what’s good for Ronin is also good for Ethereum [00:48:53] - Defining a bridge and how it differs from an exchange [00:50:24] - Lessons learned about good tokenomics and token design  [00:55:04] - The biggest potential risks to the future of Axie Infinity and its growing popularity  [00:57:13] - What an ideal future looks like for the metaverse and Axie infinity [01:01:09] - How the world is changing and why that unlocks value for play-to-earn games [01:04:03] - Asset ownership inversion and how big this could become in the future [01:05:24] - The most surprising things that have happened since joining Axie Infinity [01:06:55] - How he thinks about assessing new opportunities in crypto and the metaverse [01:09:19] - Where you can go to learn more about Axie and dabble in the game

Today, we will break down Wyndham Hotels, the world’s largest and most diverse hotel franchisor with more than 9,000 hotels across 20 brands in over 80 countries.   Wyndham is a brilliant example of a ubiquitous business that often goes unnoticed. In this breakdown, we’ll start by looking at just how vast Wyndham’s portfolio of hotels and brands is, how the Highway Act of 1956 played an important role in developing that scale, and explore the economics of hotel ownership, both from the franchisee and franchisor’s perspective.   Then we’ll dive into Wyndham’s growth algorithm, the factors that make the business resilient to external shocks, and the ways in which green programs are helping to drive higher cash-on-cash returns for franchisees.   To help break down Wyndham Hotels, host Patrick O’Shaughnessy is joined by Lauren Taylor Wolfe, co-founder and Managing Partner of Impactive Capital and a Wyndham shareholder. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here. -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, Inc. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:02:48] - [First question] - What Wyndham is and the scope of their hotel franchise [00:04:17] - Defining what select-service hotels are compared to traditional ones  [00:04:49] - An overview of what the hotel business is and their important levers  [00:06:44] - Why Wyndham’s business model is so advantageous [00:09:22] - Franchisee expectations and the pros of franchising the brand  [00:12:22] - Whether or not Wyndham participates in loan and debt generation [00:13:36] - Overview of their award-winning loyalty program [00:17:36] - Customer acquisition for their loyalty program and how it drives spending [00:19:16] - Wyndham’s corporate history and how it affects them today [00:22:17] - Driving growth beyond their current real-estate footprint [00:24:30] - Possible positive or negative nonlinear events that could affect them [00:26:09] - Overview of the sales functions inside of their business [00:28:05] - Changes in hotel use trends as of late [00:30:05] - What hotel management means as a business [00:33:05] - Capital allocation and abundant free cash flow without much need for it [00:35:48] - Considering the ESG implications when evaluating the hotel industry [00:38:17] - Aspects of the business that make it both resilient and competitive [00:42:14] - Big variables that could cause Wyndham to fail [00:44:10] - What it is about Wyndham’s economic opportunity that is favorable for franchisees [00:46:19] - Unit economics and expenses at the individual hotel level [00:47:40] - Lessons learned about brand, investing in a brand, and identifying new brands to acquire [00:50:22] - What she’s learned most as an investor working with Wyndham [00:52:19] - Attractive opportunities Hilton could offer that Wyndham couldn’t [00:53:46] - What she’s learned about being a strong operator while working at Wyndham