No question social media giants Facebook and Twitter have led the way in redefining and reinventing online social media interaction. The import and reach of the platforms have influenced not just how people interact, enabled and strengthened distant connections, galvanized social and political change, and even influenced national elections. In short, like any powerful device honed by man, it has the potential for both positive and negative uses; and has been used for both. However, a feature of their current operations is the fact that the platforms themselves do not create any content, but is the ultimate beneficiary of all the content, in many cases solely. The content is created by the millions of people that choose to utilize the platforms each day. And all that content resides with, and is owned by Facebook and Twitter.
Social Media Content Creation Will Likely Become Peer-to-Peer
The peer-to-peer paradigm utilized by blockchain technology such as Bitcoin, begs the question of why the content does not at the same time belong to its creators. Steem has shown that this paradigm can work. Articles and content created on Steem and its rewards belong directly to its creators. If users are informed that they could still continue to do everything they do on social media, but their content would belong to them, as would be the rewards ensuing due to the value of that content; and the interface of the peer-to-peer version looks equally good; it is inevitable that users would in time migrate to that peer-to-peer alternative.
German business newspaper, Handelsblatt, is reporting that Block One's big announcement scheduled for later today could well be in regards to creating such a peer-to-peer, blockchain-based version of social media platform https://decrypt.co/7278/block-one-wants-create-crypto-twitter-eos.
Facebook's Project Libra
This realization could be one of the key rationale behind the revelation of Facebook's new cryptocurrency project https://www.coindesk.com/everything-we-know-about-facebooks-cryptocurrency. It might be necessity and foresight, rather than a quest for world domination. If Block One's announcement in a few hours is indeed in regards to a full on competitor to Twitter or Facebook, without an adjustment of its current model, what is described as inevitable in the previous paragraph will likely ensue. With Facebook in the process of developing their own blockchain, we could all be in the front row seat of what is hopefully a technology and ideas contest; which ultimately will be good for every content creator and user of social media. If it is long drawn and notable, maybe it will be labeled EOS vs Facebook, or E v. F, for short.
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Regardless of what Block One announces today about EOS, Facebook's project will clearly proceed, and someone will create a more equitable social media platform likely built on a blockchain; even if ultimately that might not be Facebook's version.
Online Reviews Needs Disruption As Well
Online review is another area where millions generate content daily, providing description of their experience with various products and services, from hotel stays, to restaurant visits, to home improvement and other types of service reviews. The reviewers typically provide those content for free, while the centralized, third-party site that owns the content monetizes it. The contents are extremely useful as they provide an experiential account by those who have purchased and used those products and services. Some of the platforms, even in the past have charged other users to access such content. This is an area similarly that should eventually become peer-to-peer.
A project I have been asked to slightly provide technical advise to is recently seeking to disrupt this area as well. The project will develop a completely new approach and interface for agglomerated online reviews; similar to what Facebook did for social media interactions. The design will be fully decentralized, incorporate content rewards, and peer-to-peer from the ground up, and is expected to be open sourced.
Please join the discussions in the comment section with thoughts on what you believe are key considerations as this unfolds. If you are a developer and want to influence or be part of this also, let us know as well, as members of the project will also I expect be responding to those comments, if they are made.
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