Mediation AMA — Learn all about the COTI Mediation System and what it takes to become a COTI mediator

 COTI’s vision is to build a decentralized and scalable payments network, bringing innovative technology to the payments industry. We would like to give our community members the first chance to become a COTI mediator and help to solve disputes.

We listed below some questions and answers for those who are interested in becoming our mediators and not sure how to start.

 

Why was the COTI Mediation System created?

The COTI mediation system provides buyers and sellers with protection against errors, fraud and counter-party abuse. One of the greatest barriers in e-commerce is the lack of trust between parties that do not know each other and may never transact again. What’s more, buyer-seller protections are absent in the cryptocurrency sphere, which has prevented the mass adoption of digital currencies.

How do other digital currencies deal with transaction disputes?

In the current climate of digital currencies, buyers and sellers transacting with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum will have to independently work out differences, if any, that arise between them.

Why are mediation services provided by credit cards and peer-to-peer (P2P) companies like PayPal so expensive?

Credit card companies and PayPal use third party dispute resolution organizations (DROs) to handle complaints between transacting parties. There can be 6–8 middlemen per transaction, each taking their cut and driving up costs in the process.

How does the Mediation System work?

COTI’s approach to mediation involves harnessing a decentralised and distributed group of independent mediators to resolve disputes. Mediators work independently to validate real world information pertaining to transaction disputes and then cast votes on a mediated outcome.
Mediators receive caseloads and cast their votes using the mediator application.After mediators’ votes have been cast, they are assessed using a voting matrix that determines consensus automatically. Once a mediated outcome has been arbitrated by a quorum of mediators, the system compensates the winning party and returns that party’s balance to its rightful state.

Who can apply as a mediator?

To be approved as a COTI mediator, you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age
• Have a clean criminal background with no previous convictions
• Consent to the COTI privacy policy
• Submit identity verification documents
• Undergo an online assessment to determine that you have the aptitude to perform the mediation tasks at a high standard.
• Be a member of the COTI network (e.g., COTI wallet holder or COTI token holder)
• Demonstrate basic English language proficiency

What types of situations require mediation?

• Billing errors. The buyer completes a purchase, but later realises that
  the amount paid for the goods or services was incorrect.
• Inadvertent transfers. The user inadvertently sends funds to the
  wrong party.
• Unauthorised charges. The user is charged an amount without having
  authorised the transaction.
• Undelivered goods or services. The buyer pays a merchant for goods
  or services but the delivery of those goods or services is not fulfilled.
• Non-conforming goods or services. The buyer pays for and receives the goods or services, but the goods or services do not conform with the description or standards the seller conveyed at the time of the purchase.

What incentives do mediators receive for their services?

As a COTI mediator you will be paid in COTI tokens for each instance in which you successfully resolve buyer-seller disputes. In the event of effectively contributing to a mediated
outcome, COTI mediators will also be incentivised with higher Trust Scores.

How can mediators access the COTI Mediation System?

The Mediator application enables mediators to accept invitations to receive and review caseload data, to place wagers, and, in the event of successfully contributing to a mediated outcome, to receive payouts in COTI.

Is there collusion risk between mediators in the COTI network?

Any risk of collusion is mitigated primarily through the algorithms that determine which mediators are assigned to a specific dispute, whereby caseloads are routed intelligently to mediators who have the least likelihood to collude with one another. If mediators are found to have engaged in any
form of collusion, they will be penalized.

What happens if I’m not approved to be a COTI mediator?

COTI endeavours to make mediation open to a broad group of people and will make available online training programs that can assist candidates in acquiring the requisite knowledge for contributing to the dispute resolution process effectively.

 Apply now: https://coti.io/en/mediators.html

Learn all about the COTI Mediation System and what it takes to become a mediator. As always, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to send your questions our way here, on Reddit and on our Telegram channel. https://t.me/COTInetwork

 BECOME A COTI MEDIATOR

 The COTI community is continuously growing at a rapid rate. If you have any questions, you are welcome to get in touch with us on Telegram or via email. We will be providing further updates in the near future.