Opensea has really fucked up imo with the introduction of “Operator Filter”, which is actually a NFT marketplace blocker baked into the smart contract. Here’s what this means for artists starting on Jan. 2, 2023:
Artists will be forced to choose between these two options:

A: You check the box, “Operator Filter” which results in your smart contract blocking sales on other marketplaces like sudoswap, x2y2, and others that are on the block list. By doing so, you receive enforced royalties on the Opensea platform.

B: You don’t check the box “Operator Filter”, and leave your smart contract free and clean, which means your smart contract doesn’t block sales on any NFT marketplaces. By doing so, Opensea will make royalties optional (which Opensea doesn’t explain! This could mean anything!)

This draconian shitshow puts artists in a very fucked up position. I am pro royalties, but I also don’t believe in deciding where my collectors can sell my art. This goes against my principles. I believe that once someone has bought my NFT, it belongs to them, not me. They should have full rights of ownership and they are the only ones who decide where to sell it. I will not be participating in any blocking of any marketplaces on my art, and thereby, I will be adding this seal to inform collectors that my smart contract doesn’t contain any blocking of any marketplaces mechanism. To me, this kind of code is MALWARE! It sets the stage for proprietary wars, which is antithetical to the crypto beliefs I hold.

I am firmly an opensource, creative commons and free & clean smart contract artist.

I hosted a Twitter Spaces about the new Opensea royalty rules yesterday, you can hear it here: https://twitter.com/stellabelle/status/1601302812691820544

I made a generic seal for anyone to use if they want to add it to their art or descriptions to make it easier for collectors to identify artists who will not be using this blocking code in their contracts. You can download it here: https://imgur.com/a/TdAGh7y