Social media has come a long way since the craze started in the late 90s. People are able to share more information than ever before, interact with each other from across the globe, and even make money from their content. However, we wonder if this new wave of decentralization could replace traditional social media entirely. Decentralized systems are designed to be resistant to censorship, surveillance, fraud, and other ills of the internet. In this blog, you will learn the difference between decentralized vs traditional social media platforms, which one is better, and why. Let's start!
Control
Centralized social media is run by a company or group of people controlling the content, often to make money. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. are centralized platforms controlled by tech giants. Decentralized social media is made up of many users. Any one person or company does not control the ecosystem. The power to post, comment, and share information is spread throughout the network rather than being held in one central place. You can think of it as a peer-to-peer network, where everyone on is equal.
Decentralization gives you more options when it comes to what content you see, how you interact with others in your community, and who can influence your experience (i.e., advertisers). Here are some examples:
- If Facebook were decentralized, then each user would have their own profile page instead of connecting through Facebook’s single platform. This would allow them more control over what they share with others on their own terms instead of abiding by Facebook’s terms of service agreement (which says users must provide accurate personal information)
- If Twitter were decentralized, users could create their own feed based on their interests rather than relying on an algorithm that only shows trending tweets from other people they follow (and maybe ads!).
Revenue
The primary way that centralized social media makes money is through the use of third parties. Third parties are used to sell your data, which is then used to target you with ads and content. These are just a few examples of how third parties work:
- They track what you do online so they can target you with advertising
- They track what news stories people read, who reads them and when they’re read so they can show more relevant stories in the future
- They collect information about who reads what blogs or articles on different websites so that those sites can be formatted according to individual preferences
Decentralized social media rewards people when they provide value to others and help in growing the platform. Users can earn tokens or cryptocurrency for their posts and comments, as well as when their posts are upvoted. The reward system incentivizes them to contribute content that other users find valuable, increasing the quality of content on the platform.
Engagement
Traditional social media sites are built around engagement, and they track and sell your information to target you with ads, news stories, and more online content. In order to do this efficiently, these sites have to keep you on the site in order to get as much data as possible. You are being used and getting addicted.
The problem is that users don't necessarily want all that engagement — they just want a place where they can connect with friends or communities of interest. So while companies like Facebook make money by selling your data and ads from third-party advertisers (and using those same ads themselves), other platforms are coming up with new ways for users to monetize their own time online without having to give up as much personal information about themselves first.
Data Ownership & Privacy
On decentralized social media sites, your data belongs only to you and no one else can see it unless you want them to. In traditional social media sites, your data is owned by a corporation and they decide what gets shared with other people or companies that they have an agreement with. Facebook (now Meta) as the company determines the rules, what kind of content can be shared, and who can see it. It can use your information for advertising or other purposes without your consent. Also, they can censor your content or shadow ban you from the platforms.
In decentralized social media platforms (e.g., Peakd, Ecency & LeoFinance on Hive Blockchain), users have more control over their personal data because they own it. Instead of giving it up to a business entity that may sell it to advertisers or governments in ways that are not always transparent to them. Users also determine their own experience by choosing what content they want to read/watch and engage with as well as how much time they want to spend on each of them before moving on to another one. If there's something offensive posted somewhere else on the platform (or even outside of it), you don't have any obligation whatsoever to participate in any way!
Such platforms are built around the idea that users' privacy is of the utmost priority. Users control the content on decentralized networks because there is no company in control of what gets shared on these platforms. Generally speaking, anyone can post anything as long as it does not break a major rule like being illegal or hurting someone (for these types of things, users have an option to report posts).
If you want to share something, then you simply upload it directly from your computer or smartphone onto the decentralized network without having to go through an intermediary platform like Facebook or Instagram first.
Conclusion
With the rise of decentralized social media, we have seen a shift towards better privacy and control over our own data. This is likely only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to how we interact with each other online in the future, but it’s an important one that can help protect us from being exploited by companies who profit from our personal information. It's the best time to start your journey on Web3. Join Hive and get access to some of the most amazing decentralized social apps of the future.
Follow: @finguru
Twitter: https://twitter.com/finguru6
Discord: finguru#4062
Not financial advice. For infotainment purposes only.