Writing about the Blockchain - part 2

Writing about Wi-Fi Marketplace

Ok, returning to the topic of ICOs. There is this project, and it seems like it has some chances to survive because at least it proposes something that makes sense.

Ok, we have a WiFi sharing platform - a concept that is neither particularly new nor original, but still, it doesn't have any full-blown implementation. Like Airbnb for WiFi users. Like, if I have a WiFi router (and like, everybody has a WiFi router), I can use it to share my Internet connection with strangers and receive monetary rewards from advertisers showing those strangers various ads while they are trying to log into the network. (Because otherwise, the Internet is free.) So the strangers get the free Internet, I get tokens for providing it, advertisers get views on their banners. Pretty simple.

Another touted aspect of the project is its ability to accumulate statistics that would allow marketers to tailor their marketing and advertising campaigns so they could reach the proverbial "target audience." How they are going to achieve that is somewhat a mystery, but in any case, it's a point that's worth mentioning. Some aspects of how the narrow targeting can be achieved in such a system are pretty clear though. If I place ads at the login screen of the WiFi network located in the subway I can just try to picture a state of mind of that person, riding in the subway, and decide what kind of ads could be relevant in this situation. Like, something quick, maybe, related to ordering food, or something like that. On the other hand, a person connecting to WiFi in a cafe or waiting room has a different state of mind. He's relaxed, he has an amount of spare time, maybe, he's bored because he's compelled to sit and wait until his food arrives. So, in this case, ads related to some gaming site or some entertainment can be appropriate and relevant, like, it can be something that can help me to kill the time while I'm waiting. Or something that requires a couple of minutes of thoughtful consideration, like, I dunno, buying a house. The type of place where the WiFi spot is located also plays a role. For example, if it's a yoga class, it makes sense to show network users some banners, advertising vegan food. Because a person doing yoga can just as well be vegan, and vice versa. (In this example, ads of yoga accessories wouldn't be effective though because a yoga fan most likely already has those accessories but he might still be hungry and crave the vegan food.)

Another talking point concerns project founders and two other projects they founded before they came up with an idea of the project X. Those are the following startups: A platform that uses the phone number based user identification for public WiFi networks, and a B2B WiFi marketing campaign aggregator. Both platforms are going to be integrated into the project X as well. The point is, those guys work with such stuff for quite a while already, so they apparently have some experience, successful startups, and all that. (Ah, and there is that another guy in their team, who had something to do with deploying of WiFi in the Moscow subway.)

Ok, another talking point is the stage on which the X project is now. Ok, it's in the process of being tested, then later the startup will launch a beta-release, and a full-scale platform launch is scheduled for the Summer.

Ok, what else? The project is using tokens for its operations. There is nothing specifically interesting in how a token microeconomy is organized within this platform; it's pretty standard. Advertisers make deals with hotspot (private router) owners, money is placed on escrow, and after the ads are shown to users, those deals are considered finalized, and money is released from escrow and received by the ads placement facilitator (it sounds cool). I mean the guy providing a free WiFi and space for ads on the WiFi network login page.

Ok, all settlements are conducted on the blockchain, which makes them reliable. All the statistics are stored on the blockchain, which makes it un-falsifiable, and other stuff like that. Tokens can be exchanged for Bitcoins or normal money on exchanges. Usual stuff.

Some people are concerned that the participation in such a project may require from WiFi router owners technical skills; there can be technical issues, related to the variety of the WiFi hardware, plus some people voice concerns about potential security issues in such a system. Like, it can be used by cybercriminals or terrorists or whatever. Anyway, fuck those people, like, all this won't comprise a sufficiently large paragraph, and all this stuff is somewhat doesn't fit the mold.

Ok, it seems like that's it. All talking points are outlined. The project is pretty simple, and the concept is old. What can be an introductory paragraph for such a thing? Like, there are options of how I can shape the context of this article. For example, it can be something in lines with, "There are some places where people are still struggling to get Internet access" or "We are used to spend most of our time online. Unfortunately, when we are en route, it's not always possible to get the Internet access, especially for free." Such beginnings somewhat miss the mark. Ok, key things about the project: It allows any WiFi router owner getting some passive income by participating in the program. It allows creating a total WiFi coverage, utilizing multiple private WiFi spots. It's decentralized, "crowd-based" project similar to Airbnb. Maybe, to start with the ubiquity of WiFi in our lives. Like,

"We are hunters in the concrete jungle of modern metropolis. Our hunt is relentless, and it never stops. No matter what we do: commute to work, sit in a cafe, or just walk down the street, we stay on the lookout for our prey. We are hunting for free Wi-Fi networks. In the ideal world, the Internet coverage is total, so I never go offline or need to switch to the expensive 3G-4G option. In reality, though, I often need to rely on the presence of free Wi-Fi networks in my vicinity. Since I use the Internet as a key medium for my work-related communications, and I need to stay online all the time, no matter whether I'm at home, or en route somewhere, I will have no other option than to use 3G, and this is going to put an additional dent in my budget, so I keep dreaming about the world where the Internet is omnipresent and free.

The X project addresses the problem of Internet access blah blah blah blah blah."

Writing about Cool Cousin Project

Ok, while both my laptop and phone perform well-intentioned attempts to piss me off today, I'm still trying to focus on the project at hand. So, it's something similar to Couchsurfing platform, except it's quite different. Ok, what characteristics define Couchsurfing? First, It doesn't include any commercial component, and, the second, it's mostly about free accommodations and hanging out. So, compared to Couchsurfing, the project X is different in that it's at least partly commercial, and it's less about couches and more about actual traveling activities.

Ok, namely project X organizes people who may see themselves as potential tourist guides ranging from amateurs to professionals. (with respective expectations of monetary compensation) Well, it makes sense. I remember, when I had registered on Couchsurfing, I was primarily curious if there was somebody on the platform who could provide some valuable insights about the potential points of destination. It would be nice, also, if those people had some level of knowledge and expertise, not just suggestions of their favorite coffee shops and stuff like that. So, I learned that it was mostly about free lodging and hangouts. I remember, a while ago I talked to some guy who wanted to visit Moscow with an aim of exploring some really obscure and peculiar places. Like, abandoned factories, or, like, some unremarkable street corners that, in fact, happened to be historical landmarks related to some events and personalities nobody knew or cared about. He did some historical project, something like that. So he asked if I knew somebody who could have some information about such things, and who could offer some kind of guidance. I said it was unlikely.

Then I kinda thought about it, and it occurred to me that this was really something that could be incredibly useful for travelers, and it seemed like such a thing didn't exist. Like, an opportunity to get in touch with locals who might provide some valuable information about the place, something that might be invisible to the tourists following traditional routes towards conventional landmarks and sightseeing spots. The Couchsurfing too allows to get in touch directly with local people, but there are three caveats. First, it's after all, primarily about free accommodation. Second, it's like, the traveler really has to get in the direct contact with his host. (What if I just need to stay in touch online with somebody who could provide me with the useful information and help me to find my way around. Plus, what if I want to keep in touch with a number of locals simultaneously, receiving various types of guidance) Third, it's really non-commercial. While it's fine if I just want to drop somewhere for free or, maybe, hang around and socialize, it's not going to work for somebody who travels with some specific purpose. Especially, if it's related to gaining a deeper knowledge of the place, beyond the standard travel brochures and must-visit spots. This kind of activity would require an assistant with some level of expertise and some efforts on his/her part. It accounts for the work of a professional guide, and few people with this level of competence would be willing to do it for free. So, the Couchsurfing platform with its non-commercial ideology automatically cuts off anybody who might be interested in employing their knowledge about the place (plus some specific expertise, say, in history, architecture, archeology, art, agriculture, etc.) to earn some money by providing pro-level tour assistance.

Ok, so the project in question addresses this particular problem. Namely, finding local people who can provide valuable information about the place and guidance. The platform is specifically focused on organizing people, willing to help each other in finding their way around. Like, naturally, it can be the most complicated aspect of traveling. Finding out about some not well-known places and spots, figuring out the ways to reach some remote locations not easily accessible by any form of local city transportation, organizing transfers, procuring tickets to "hot" events, and stuff like that. The level of assistance and "guide"s professionalism can vary. It can be just some suggestions about places and routes. Like, it can be just camaraderie in the best traditions of Couchsurfing. And, at the same time, the platform can host professionals with the deep knowledge of certain topics, who might wish to offer their assistance for a fee. This aspect of the platform might be also valuable for people who don't possess that Couchsurfing spirit and just look for ways to make money off their guiding skills.

So, I registered on the platform X and took a brief glance at how all this looks. Technically, it's somewhat similar to Google Maps. There is a map of the city with markers, pointing to the places marked by "curators" as remarkable in some way. They also have written brief reviews of those places. Each city has a number of such "curators," or potential guides. Theoretically, a traveler can get in touch with them and ask for some help, information, or whatever. Plus, another touted aspect of the platform is an opportunity to find "like-minded" people. Like, each curator has his/her profile filled with the detailed information about them, (on a surprisingly high literary level) so a traveler can potentially find people with the same interests, mindset, or possessing that kind of knowledge the traveler seeks. According to the platform's description, there are different categories of users on the platform. Simple users (like tourists, looking for assistance), semi-professional (amateur) guides, professional guides, editors... Well, it's worth mentioning, that another aspect of the platform is its content. The project organizers are expecting its users to generate all types of valuable insights in the form of articles, videos, reviews, etc. This activity can boost guides' reputation and money-making potential, plus the production of content is subject to monetization per se.

I asked the platform organizers about the commercial aspect and potential usefulness of the platform for those who want to stay up to date, regarding various events and activities at the place of their location. In fact, yes, and there is a special emphasis on those things. The platform has a vetting process for its members who want to play the role of assistants and guides, and one important criterion their ability to keep in touch with whatever interesting stuff might be going on around. Another criterion is the level of their accessibility online. Speaking of monetization, apart from the fees the guides can get for their services, the project is also planning to sell various tickets directly on the platform, taking commissions. Plus, platform users can make money through affiliated links. All this, of course, revolves, as usual, around the blockchain token economy.

There are two types of projects I usually have: Pipe-dreams, existing solely within the realm of the startup's White Paper, and actually working projects. The project X definitely falls into the latter category, with its "curators" already working in about 700 cities around the world. It's remarkable that this app is mentioned in various top tens of traveling apps (not having any relation to ICO promotion), so it seems like this thing has actually taken off.

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Yup, once again, that stumble block of the first paragraph. Where should I start? There are alternatives: I can talk about Couchsurfing, or I can talk in general about problems travelers have in finding and identifying unique and authentic places and spots. Should I bring up Couchsurfing at all? I think the points that need to be outlined in the first paragraph are:

First, travelers fall prey to travel agencies and agents, depriving them of the true authentic travel experience. Plus, travel agents are expensive, and their perception of what is cool might not be the same as the perception of the particular tourist.

Second, travelers want to connect with local people who might have deeper insider knowledge of the place they are planning to visit.

Third, Couchsurfing provides that kind of experience, but, in general, it's more about accommodations.

Forth, some travelers might seek some in-depth knowledge of the place connected to its history, architecture, and stuff.

Fifth, there are people who can provide this kind of knowledge and guidance, but they don't fit into Couchsurfing paradigm because they are professionals and will unlikely offer their services for free.

Sixth, apart from finding spots, there might be other troubles and hassles related to finding ways to reach some remote places, procuring tickets to popular events. (or finding accommodation in places swamped by a wave of visitors) Those are things that are usually solved for lazy tourists by travel agents, but they can, just as well, be delegated to volunteer local guides and experts.

Seventh, it might be hard for a traveler to keep in touch with all the events and cool stuff that might be happening in the place of his/her destination. So local guides can help to stay up to date, regarding everything that's going on around. Which, in turn, can incredibly enhance the travel experience.

Ok, this kind of introduction will organically bring me to the concept of project X. The key points about the project X itself would be:

It creates a commercial infrastructure, so all wannabe guides and information providers have an opportunity to earn something. Which, in turn, might attract more people with knowledge and expertise, as well as professional guides.

It's based on the concept of finding "like-minded" people that could direct the traveler, according to his/her own perception of what's cool and interesting. Similar to Couchsurfing, but the difference is that the traveler doesn't necessarily need to meet those people in person. It's more about online communication, information exchange, and assistance. Plus, the traveler can stay in touch with multiple local guides at once.

Another aspect of the platform is its support of content creation within it. Like, people can write articles and reviews, shoot videos and photos. And all that is naturally going to make this portal more interesting and informative.

Various approaches to monetization: Direct payments, commissions from selling tickets, affiliated links. In other words, it creates an infrastructure that embraces not only travelers and guides but also all organizations and venues, making money off tourism. So the platform can be interesting to businesses as well as a vehicle for marketing and promotion.

The actual situation with the platform implementation. As a matter of fact, the project is already functioning in about 700 cities around the world; it has a web interface, the iOS app. (Android app is up and coming) And although it doesn't bustle with the activity, and the user interface can use some improvements (Like giving users and guests an ability to vote and comment on place descriptions and reviews) the platform has definitely taken off.

The classification of users within the platform. Like, it includes tourists, guides, people providing services and support, content editors, and editing committees.

The vetting process for potential guides. People who want to participate in the project in this role need to meet certain criteria. Like, to be more or less qualified, regarding the knowledge of whereabouts and related stuff, be accessible online, be able to keep in touch with various events happening in their location.

The system of internal governance and moderation. It's another interesting aspect of blockchain platforms in general - collective governance. For example, if I post a review, the quality of the review is assessed by other users, whose upvotes eventually decide whether this review will be approved or not. All other platform governance related decisions, as I understand it, are done similarly. Like, accepting and promoting certain users, granting them some privileges, maybe, ratings, stuff like that.

Writing about the KickCity Project

So, thinking about this next project. There is a lot of aspects to it, and it can be looked at from different angles, so I need some structure. What am I going to include, and what am I going to skip?

The startup in question is an event sharing platform similar to the Facebook event system, for what I know, but with a spin of monetary incentive, based on tokens.

First, let's make a list of all major aspects of this story.

First, it's a story of a talented Nigerian entrepreneur, who organized a successful startup in SpB, based on an idea that came to him when he worked in a hotel, and people constantly asked him where they could go and stuff. Also, he saw a dream, from which he'd learned how this project should've been called. In other words, the story of success, blah-blah.

Another angle that requires consideration is that the project has already somewhat gained traction. So I need to mention, what exactly is currently going on with this app - its users, and people who try earn tokens on the promotional activity, and things like that. It's complicated because when the project is already in the wild but it's still in its initial stage, the information about this aspect of its real-life application is scarce.

The third angle: The project has an interesting history of promotion and financing, including various blockchain accelerators and other spooky organizations like that. Plus a number of key events and conferences where this startup managed to attract additional money and sponsors. It's worth mentioning.

The fourth angle is something eventually related to the project itself. I noticed one interesting phrase somewhere, suggesting that the project positions itself as a social network, rather than a simple event sharing platform. As I see it, there are three cornerstones this platform has: The social element, the commercial element powered by event organizers. (if they'll manage to get on board big event organizers, like theatres, clubs, restaurants, cinemas, concerts, etc. Technically, it can also be event and ticket sale aggregators.) And the monetization for event promoters. The third element here is interesting because it essentially gives each platform's participant a monetary incentive. Like, everybody who signs up on the platform just to stay up to date with events and stuff can also share and promote events. Most likely, people will actually do that. And here this additional monetary incentive fits perfectly well.

The fifth aspect is the platform's features. Because this is something that defines it both as a social network and commercial event aggregator. Also, here it would make sense to mention, what essentially differentiate it from ticket aggregators. Namely, timing, place, and social element. Like, people always want to go someplace located nearby; they more often than not make their decisions spontaneously and they want to check who of their friends are going to attend as well. (Or other types of social interactions related to the event, I dunno) Ok, there are such features as public and private events, and, also, free events like a private party, or commercial events, such as a concert, tickets to which also can be purchased through the platform. Plus, of course, tokens for event promoters, cash-backs, etc.

The sixth vantage point shows how this startup compares to other existing similar platforms. There are ticket sale aggregators like ticket.ru, the facebook event system, timepad, meetup.com (what's that), there was also the mention of Foursquare, and similar stuff. As I understand, a key advantage of the project is that it has both social and commercial element, while all aforementioned projects are either social or commercial.

Ok, the seventh element is the platform's architecture and blockchain. In one of the articles I've just read, there were mentioned problems with counterfeit tickets, speculations, and price hikes of ticket aggregators. Definitely, the blockchain can make the whole process more transparent if, for example, ticket sales are also conducted on the blockchain (Which is not clear at this point)

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Well, Ok, So my brain is in that nasty state when it's way too exhausted to think coherently, so I can't compose anything decent, regarding that wonderful startup. And, at the same time, it's too wound up, in case I wanted to take a nap for a couple of hours and finish that stuff in the morning, so it's not going to happen either.

So, since I still have some flow of thoughts, I will ruminate and, maybe, compile some rough outlines of a draft or something. Like, what would be the prologue for example? The prologue will be an overview of ticket aggregators and social networking platforms, and that they all fulfill one function or another, like social networking or commercial promotion, so they cannot compete with the project combining both those functions.

Like "When we are looking for some events and places to visit we want to find some site, where we could buy tickets and, at the same time, learn who of our friends are going to visit the same event. The latter we can do on Facebook event pages, but we cannot buy tickets there. We can buy tickets from ticket sale aggregators like ticket.ru or register for the event on Timepad, but those sites, in turn, are devoid of a social component. We might wish to organize our own event, and it's possible to do on Facebook but first, there is no way to make it commercial (like I cannot organize a ticket sale on Facebook), and second, I cannot set up the level of privacy for the event. So, for example, it would only be visible and available to a group of my friends, or people related to a certain field, like programmers or ventriloquists. Although, maybe, it's possible. But, anyway, I cannot sell tickets on Facebook. Also, I cannot convince random people to promote my event, unless they are genuinely interested. So, I may be interested in a platform that, keeping all the social element, would also give some monetary incentive to random people to promote my events.

So, the story

X is a talented entrepreneur from Nigeria, who finished some education with a gold medal and got a scholarship and stuff, so he could move anywhere and do some business or something. So he kinda ended up in SPb, where he devised the project Y. The idea of the project came to him when he worked in a hotel. (so much for a scholarship) And people asked him somewhat in the middle of the night where they could go and have fun, and he googled stuff and sent them somewhere, but sometimes they returned, saying that it wasn't that much fun there. So X decided that he needed to build a platform where people could go and find out about places they might visit to have fun and stuff. So they wouldn't bother and disturb him anymore. So he invented the project Y. Once he saw a dream, in which he saw three potential names for his project. Then he kinda walked down the street and asked people, which of those three names they liked the best. And they said it was Y. Thus the project eventually got this name - Y.

What's interesting about the Y project is that it simultaneously includes elements of the social network and commercial platform. People and organizations can organize events there and, like on Facebook, people can click there, saying that they are going to some event or at least they are interested. I can share it with my friends, see who of my friends are also going there, write some comments, tag people, and stuff. What this platform also has, and what Facebook lacks is that I can buy tickets right there on the platform. (Or sell tickets if I organize my own event) So there's this commercial element that social networks lack. Also, people can share and promote events, and they have monetary incentive to do so (like they receive those tokens and stuff), so this may stimulate them to promote events more actively. Like, I organize an event and buy a pool of tokens, with which I reward anybody, promoting my event. So it's pretty neat.

So, many serious investors became interested in this stuff, and the project Y got the sponsorship from "Y generator," some angel investors, the government of Finland (after they conducted some conference in Finland) I need to check this list. They conducted some conferences, and people got excited and stuff, and more investors and sponsors started supporting the project. So they are kinda all set. Ah, also they are going to cooperate with some Russian telecom company, the name of which is actually never mentioned.

Also, the project Y is already becoming a popular alternative social networking platform in SPb (and some other Russian cities - I need to check). Also, they are planning to unfold a similar activity in NYC, and some other cities around the world, (which I also I don't remember.) Ok, the thing is, they kinda already have a working app for Android and IOS, and there are users on board and stuff. Like, at least from that interview with Life, it's clearly visible that there is that app with the whole list of different events, and those events have like, thousands of views. So, although this thing is still in its initial stage, it has sorta already taken off and is gaining momentum.

So, yeah, technically it's based on the blockchain and has its tokens that are used to reward those people promoting events. At the same time, tokens can be used to buy tickets sold on that platform. Plus, tokens can be converted into fiat. Plus, if I want to buy tickets, I can buy them for normal money, but if I buy them using crypto or platform tokens, I get the stuff cheaper. So, it also stimulates people to use the platform, crypto, tokens, and stuff. Plus, those who buy tickets after following the reference links of promoters get some cash back (like, I dunno, token rewards?) So they kinda also have an incentive to keep using the platform and buy more tickets there.

One might think that such a scheme would lead to a lot of spam. Like, people would begin to try getting as many tokens as possible - sharing and promoting everything they see. But there is also a cunning trick to prevent that shit from happening. Like, similar to Ethereum where for anything to happen you need to spend "gas," (small amounts of Ether) here we have a scheme where promoters actually spend their tokens by promoting and get rewarded only for actual visitors. So, if I promote something, I kinda got to think whether it's going to work out or not. Because, like, if I share those events, and nobody turns up following my promo-links, I kinda waste tokens.

There is a couple of other things. First, there is some math principle they refer to, something like "the utility of social network exponentially grows with an increasing number of its users," like, the networking effect or something. The second, they use some kind of special protocol, which is cool for some reason.

Discarded Paragraphs

I personally believe that the blockchain, being handy as it is, will soon become a matter-of-fact component of all new IT projects. The thing is, it produces a reliable and robust foundation for all monetary exchanges within the platform. As opposed to current algorithms used to process and store likes and votes, such a system provides a level of security sufficient to handle money transfers and other similar operations. In this respect, growing popularity of the blockchain correlates with a tendency of new projects to become miniature economies with their users producing and exchanging items that might have the real marketing value, be it articles, drawings, 3d- models, etc.

There is a lot of ingenuity in the cryptocurrency's underlying architecture, including mechanisms setting limits on the emission of new crypto-coins. The fact that cryptocurrency cannot be issued uncontrollably prevents its devaluation due to the excessive supply, which, in turn, keeps all cryptocurrency holders and other players on crypto-markets assured in its stability. The limited supply is one of the necessary conditions for an asset to be considered a viable means of exchange. For example, this is a key characteristic of gold and other precious metals, which value is defined by their rarity in nature. The limits on cryptocurrency emission are determined by the algorithmic complexity of the issuance of new crypto-coins.