At Moonlighting, we put our users first, and with our plans to implement blockchain technology, we are moving that mission forward. With the adoption of blockchain, users on Moonlighting will be introduced to the next iteration of the gig economy. But as with any technological upgrade, there will likely be a learning curve.
As Moonlighting’s Co-founder and CTO, I want to ensure that our freelancers truly understand the impacts of blockchain and cryptocurrency on Moonlighting and how these technologies can improve the future of work for a global user base. So, let’s explore the changes being made to the platform and how they will empower our users.
Getting Better with Blockchain Technology
The most significant upgrade to Moonlighting will be the integration of blockchain technology.
At first, the concept of blockchain can feel very complex and daunting, but the gist of it is pretty simple. Blockchain is a technological platform that allows for decentralized, distributed, trust-less transactions to be made in a way that is secure, verifiable, and unchangeable.
In the most basic sense, public blockchain works as a decentralized, distributed open ledger: transactions are written to, and from, the blockchain and they remain there forever. Data written to the blockchain cannot be altered without also altering all previous blocks in the chain, which makes it next to impossible for a public blockchain.
By leveraging Blockchain technology, Moonlighting will be able to provide users with quick and secure global transactions on Moonlighting, and also develop features to facilitate profile portability.
Powering the Portable Freelance Profile
What does profile portability mean for our users? Essentially, Moonlighting’s blockchain technology will restore profile ownership to the freelancers that it serves. In the current freelance economy, job sites and freelance platforms exist at the center, many charging freelancers outrageous fees for posting, advertising, and access to potential leads. Currently, those big companies own the freelancer’s profile data, including general information, work history, reviews and ratings
Our goal is to position freelancers at the center of the economy, giving them the power to decide who can access their data. If a user decides to join another participating freelance platform, they can bring their Moonlighting profile and work history to the new platform instead of starting from scratch. We believe that with the introduction of standardized global profiles across platforms, freelancers will be measured by their abilities and the merits and quality of their work, not by their demographic or geographic boundaries.
Building the Moonbit for Freelancers
To help foster this global freelance economy, Moonlighting will issue a new token called Moonbit designed specifically to meet the needs of freelancers in the gig economy and to put freelancers in front of a broader, global audience. The low transaction costs will empower Moonbit users to transact and perform business across the globe, allowing a dramatic increase in available audience. More importantly, we believe it will help to foster an economy specific to freelancers, creating a community of workers and the people who hire them.
In addition, this will create a known, standard means by which users can be compensated for their services and data on the chain, encouraging the adoption of Moonbits and adding trust to the transactions.
Rewards Beyond the Paycheck
With the introduction of Moonbit, we will also be implementing a Rewards Program. Through the Rewards Program, Moonlighting will offer users the chance to collect Moonlighting points for creating a robust and complete profile, making transactions, and sharing Moonlighting posts on external social media outlets. As Moonlighting point milestones are reached, users will be rewarded with Moonbits.
Easing into the Use of Moonbits
The use of an altcoin, such as Moonbit, could have a learning curve for the users new to cryptocurrencies. To make sending and receiving payments in Moonbits as simple as possible, we are developing a natively integrated lightweight browser-based Moonbit Wallet for our users.
This wallet will be an interface to facilitate the easy in and out transfers of the currency. The wallet will be incorporated into the website, making it easy for users to begin using Moonbits. With immediate access to the wallet, users will be educated and guided in the process of transitioning to cryptocurrencies, meaning they can stop worrying about merchant fees and begin immediately making transactions.
Moving Forward
By positioning freelancers at the center of the gig economy, we can better serve our users and our mission: help people make money. Now, with the possibilities offered by blockchain technology, Moonlighting can bring this mission to a global audience and give the gig economy back to the freelancer.
Interested in learning more about the new Moonbit cryptocurrency? Follow the progress of our new technology developments and the launch of our ICO.
Originally published at blog.moonlighting.com on January 5, 2018.