LG shutters NFT marketplace, Art Lab as digital arts fail to reignite spark

LG Electronics has announced the closure of its NFT marketplace for TVs, Art Lab. The announcement on the soon-to-be-defunct website stated that the company intends to shift its focus and explore new opportunities. The LG Art Lab platform will officially close on June 17, 2025. 

The enthusiasm surrounding non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has noticeably waned since its 2022 peak. Initially, NFTs were introduced as revolutionary assets in the digital art and collectibles space. However, the sector ran into challenges such as market oversaturation, declining value, and a decline in consumer interests over time, which led to reciprocal changes within the industry, including the closure of many NFT trading platforms.

In January 2025, Quidd, an NFT marketplace under Animoca Brands, announced its closure. The platform ceased operations on January 3, 2025. MakersPlace, another digital art platform, also shut down its operations in early 2025 due to “ongoing market challenges” after six years of operation.

Many NFT trading platforms were shut down as early as 2024. GameStop launched its NFT marketplace in July 2022, during the peak of NFT trading and decided to close down the platform in early 2024.

The closure was influenced by declining trading volumes after the peak November 2022 period, company layoffs, and declining interest and demand for NFTs.

LG Art Lab announces closure to its community

Per an announcement made on the LG Art Lab’s website, users will be unable to make purchases on the platform starting on March 10.

The company says the LG Art Lab team will automatically transfer users’ NFTs to their wallets by April 30 so that the pieces can be resold. The notice also states that collectors and artists can manually transfer their artworks from the NFT marketplace to their own wallets.

“Please note that Ethereum minted NFTs can be resold in other platforms (e.g. Opensea),” the notice read.

The notice did not cite any specific reason for the closure of the platform. Instead, it vaguely expressed the company’s intention to explore other business opportunities.

“As the NFT space continues to evolve, we believe it is the right time to shift our focus and explore new opportunities,” it read.

The platform will shut down completely on June 17, but customer support for Art Lab users will be available until July 18.

“While this chapter is coming to an end, our passion for digital art and innovation remains strong, and we look forward to seeing how the NFT space continues to grow and evolve,” LG said.

Rise of LG Art Lab

Launched in September 2022, LG Art Lab was designed to integrate digital art into consumers’ living rooms. The platform allowed users to buy, sell, and display NFTs directly on their LG smart TVs.

LG Art Lab debuted during the period when interest in NFTs was at an all-time high. The platform aimed to make digital art accessible to a larger audience. The platform operated on the Hedera blockchain and later expanded to Ethereum, offering a range of digital artworks. Prices of the NFTs offered by LG Art Lab varied significantly. Some pieces like the “Bloom” animation from Bryan Brinkman cost the equivalent of $59.82, while a piece from Amadon sold for almost $4,000.

Users could complete transactions on LG Art Lab using LG Electronics’ cryptocurrency wallet app, Wallypto. This made the process of acquiring and displaying digital art easier.

Art Lab was launched shortly after Samsung launched a similar NFT TV marketplace in partnership with Nifty Gateway. The Samsung NFT TV marketplace has outlasted the LG NFT marketplace as they are so far still operational.

The NFT market has experienced fluctuations across the spectrum since its boom in the early 2020s, and many companies are recording investment losses. The Australian Open’s Artball program, which linked NFTs to specific plots on the tennis court, saw the value of its tokens plummet by up to 90% as the initiative lost momentum.

The sector has experienced a general decline in interest, but some sectors, such as gaming and virtual real estate, continue to find value in NFTs.

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