Bit Coin only offers value to two groups of people. Criminals who want to transfer their ill gotten funds without being traced and Speculators who think they have found a magical way to get rich that no one has ever thought of before. They have found the one thing that will keep on going up and up for ever and ever. In order to get rich all you have to do is buy it, regardless of price and HODL. I don't fall into either of those two groups so I have no use for Bit Coin.
Steem on the other hand will have value so long as Steemit.com is functioning. On YouTube content creators post not knowing what, if anything will be earned. Patrons then show support in a variety of ways, by viewing, liking sharing or clicking on an ad that cost nothing or you can make a purchase from a sponsor or donate on Patreon if you wish to give financial support. So that is a proven business model. Steemit.com takes the business model of Youtube and organizes it more like a food co-op.
Follow the money. Youtube Patreon model. The consumer buys a product from an advertiser. The advertiser spends money on Youtube. Youtube takes a cut and gives some to the creators that advertisers approve of. While each person does have some affect on payout through their viewing habits and subscribes, the Advertisers have ultimate say on what content gets paid for and how much. If people wish to support a particular creator they can use Patreon, who, of course, will take a cut.
In this system Youtube really don't care about creators or users. They cater to advertisers. Advertisers don't care about Youtube, creators or users, they just want the best bang for their ad dollar and will go where ever, they think that is. Creators want to share their work, some want to get paid and some don't. But they all want to share their work and while they hope you enjoy it, that is not what drives their passion in most cases. They don't really care about Youtube, any good platform that lets them share their work will do. They don't care about the advertisers per say. Users want to be entertained and informed, they really don't care about the platform, advertisers other users or creators that they are not interested in. If they want to support a creator financially they do so directly through a donation.
So you have all these forces that have no interest in each other, coming together to create a platform they all gain from. They all get what they want while being motivated solely by self interest. That is the magic of the natural free market at work. That sounds like win win win win. Yes, but what if we could still do that and make it more healthy. Well the beautiful magic of the natural free market has given us another more healthy way for creators to share their work and users are able to directly support those who inform and entertain them the best.
Steemit model. Everyone has a vested interest in each other. A sense of community that you just cant get on Youtube. Youtube is like a Hospital Room, Steemit is like your own Bedroom. Here the cash flow comes from the users directly into the platform and benefits those in the community. When you buy Steem, you are not only funding the website but you give yourself more influence on the site. You can make sure the content creators you like get support without giving Patreon a cut and support the platform without having to buy products from a third party. I still don't think any altcoin will be used as currnecy but at least Steem has some purpose for existing.
The argument for Bit coin goes something like this. You need to buy some Bit Coin. why? Because it keeps going up and up. Why does it keep going up and up? Because it is the future of money. Why is it the future of money? Because everyone is buying it. Why is everyone buying it? Because it keeps going up and up. I have heard the same argument for Steem but with Steem there is more to it. With mining the only real proof of work is the Power Bill. With Steem the proof of work is all the content that has been created on Steemit.com