For content creators, EOS + Steem > Centralized Internet?
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All of these platforms thrive because of us, the users - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.
They earn millions while we create content on their platforms for them without even realizing that they are monetizing our lives.
YouTube and Twitch like platforms offer rewards but demand ridiculous effort and time. Don't get me wrong. I have great respect for content creators on these platforms who have worked their butts off to get to where they are but these platforms have never been inclusive and I don't see how they can ever be all-inclusive.
"No idea is above scrutiny. No people are beneath dignity." - Maajid Nawaz
Not everyone speaks or writes English. Not everyone understands business. Not everyone is confident and outspoken. The centralized internet is often dismissive of these people. Regardless of their gender, skill set, interests, religious affiliations, political philosophies, and educational opportunities, everyone deserves a shot at a better life.
As much as I would like the world to be more inclined towards knowledge and fellowship... in the world that we currently live in a better life is unfortunately determined by access to money. So until the time (if ever) living for the betterment of society (Star Trek utopia) becomes an accepted universal norm, let's strive to make access to monetary instruments as widespread as possible.
This isn't just a philosophical concept, this can be achieved by creating "free market solutions to secure life, liberty, and property for all" (Dan Larimer).
Highly scalable, decentralized, zero fees, innovation-friendly blockchain platforms have the potential to make these dreams a reality.
The centralized internet, while beautiful, is broken and one-sided. So much so that users don't even think they deserve rewards for posting useful, insightful, interesting, or even fun content.
The centralized internet is also broken because you can issue threats on these platforms, let's say twitter, and often get away without any consequences whatsoever. Important to point out that a threat of rape or murder is very different from disagreement over a topic.
Centralized internet has no mechanisms in place to tackle these disturbing trends with speed and efficiency. Decentralized internet, on the other hand, has a game theoretic approach to digital life. If you threaten someone online, communities can penalize you (like a downvote on Steem). Of course, there are still chances of abuse in these systems and they are far from perfect but at least they are not one-sided and we don't have to wait for the great CEOs and community managers of Twitter and Facebook to do the right thing and take action or penalise terrible social behaviour.
The internet needs to change. The internet needs decentralization because the rewards must be shared not just by the great entrepreneurs who build these platforms but also their billions of diverse users who add colour and value to their platforms.
It seems obvious that a decentralized internet is only a matter of time and the platforms that don't reward their users will either cease to exist or lose their current relevance and influence.
But as Elon Musk has reminded us in the past, technology doesn't automatically improve. For technology to improve a lot of people have to work very hard over a long period of time.
Decentralized blockchain powered platforms can and will replace every addictive social app we know right now. Or the centralized apps will embrace decentralization (even if they did, I doubt that they will do so in time).
Now that Dan Larimer has confirmed that he will be working on a Steem competitor on EOS as I was hoping he would, I am increasingly confident about EOS. And I am also confident that Steem will also not just survive but thrive. Despite its growing popularity let's not forget that in terms of number of users Steem is still fairly small. Much of the world hasn't heard of Steem or EOS yet.
EOS and Steem (when I say Steem I mean everything powered by the Steem blockchain - steemit, busy, dtube, dlive, dsound, dmania etc) are going to compete in future and that's a good thing for both platforms. These platforms are going to have a profound impact on society. Far greater, I believe, than Facebook and Twitter have.
Check out my previous posts:
- Decentralize Everything? Yes! Please!
- Everything John Oliver forgot to tell you about EOS!
- A general purpose blockchain-based gaming model
If you like my work kindly upvote, resteem it to your friends, and follow me - @shikharsri
Long term is this bad for Steemit? It seems Dan isn't entirely happy with Steemit i.e. the Steem whales that hold too much influence over the platform. This, I suspect, is why he choose the one year EOS distribution model, to scupper any whales' plans to corner a large portion of the float.
Should us Steem hodlers be worried about a p1ssed off Dan looking to teach a few Steem whales a lesson?
I don't know about Steemit the company itself but in my personal opinion I don't think hodlers of Steem should be worried. Dan is building a separate ecosystem on EOS.. Some people seem to think when Steem competitors are launched and if they are better in some way than everyone will just leave Steem.. Not sure how true that is.. time will tell.. Let's not forget that Steem doesn't have millions of users yet like some centralized platforms do.. When big youtubers hear about dtube or famous game streamers hear about dlive and they decide to move to the steem blockchain it benefits the blockchain as a whole.. Even if EOS has a better and more fair system than Steem I don't think Steem will simply lose relevance. Also, the EOS platform (steem competitor that Dan is building) as promising as it sounds and as excited as I am about it is still a long way from launch so Steem still has the early mover advantage.. Just my thoughts.. Interested to know what others think.
Seems like a fair analysis of the situation. I am a fan of both Steem and EOS. Just didn't think they would complete against each other. A bit naive of me, to think social media or content creation apps wouldn't be built on EOS, I suppose.
Competition could compel them both to be better platforms, so long as one doesn't reach total dominance over the other. So, we could end up with a much better EOS and Steemit over the next few years.
Agreed. The more the merrier for content creators.
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