Reddit launches Ethereum-based points systems
Known as the front page of the internet, Reddit, is a website that hosts a network of online communities based on people's interests. The website has just launched a new feature in limited communities called Community Points, which are ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain.
There were rumors in April that the website would launch a new blockchain-based point system. Reddit user MagoCrypto posted a screen recording of a walkthrough of a new build of the Reddit mobile app that shows a feature with mention of Community Points. The FAQs section of the wallet appeared to have pages on distribution, wallet backup and recovery, and the blockchain.
According to Reddit, “Community Points are a way for Redditors to earn a piece of their favorite communities. Points can be spent on premium features and are used as a measure of reputation in the community.”
The online media giant explained that Reddit karma provides the basis for measuring people’s contribution, but the final decision is up to the community. Reddit Karma is a reward earned by users for posting popular content. Users gain karma points when their posts are upvoted and lose karma points when posts are downvoted to a number lower than zero. The cumulative of these votes is known as the user’s Karma.
This is part of a larger vision Reddit has to create a more decentralized social media platform, a “free frontier” as they have called it. The platform is currently beta testing Community Points, “through summer 2020.” To begin with, two tokens, one named $MOONS and other $BRICKS, will be issued to members of the subreddits Cryptocurrency and FortniteBR. The Cryptocurrency and FortniteBR subreddits have 1M and 1.3M members, respectively.
In the post launching $MOONS on the Cryptocurrency subreddit, Community Points are described as a way for users to be rewarded for their contributions with a unit of ownership in their subreddit. Community Points can be earned, tipped, won, collected, and spent on unique items within a community. Each subreddit will have its own stylization of Community Points.
Initially, 50M $MOONS will be distributed based on karma earned in the cryptocurrency subreddit to date. The amount distributed each following month will start at 5 million and decrease by 2.5% every cycle so that the total number of $MOONS distributed over time will approach a maximum cap of 250M. The FortNiteBR subreddit has not specified an issuance rate for $BRICKS.
Reddit made it clear that users have “complete control” of their Community Points, as they exist on the Ethereum blockchain independently of Reddit. The Community Points can be viewed, spent, claimed, and stored in the “Vault,” which is part of the Reddit App.
Within the Vault users essentially create Ethereum wallets, and have full control over private keys. Reddit will only have users public address to check their balance and award new Points. According to Reddit, “Advanced users can use other Ethereum tools if they wish,” which will be made available within the app.
While in beta, the Vault Page on Reddit explains that the Community Points will be on the Rinkeby test net. Balances, transactions, and memberships may be reset.
After the feature leaves beta, Community Points will be migrated to the Ethereum mainnet. Points balances will be carried over but will need to be reclaimed. The development team is also encouraging people to pitch in on the effort of testing the beta by inviting security researchers to assist in finding any vulnerabilities.
In a Twitter post, Brian Armstrong the CEO and Co-Founder of Coinbase states “this is really well-executed, and a model for other crypto startups to emulate for a token launch that helps bring an online community together, and delivers real value. The internet finally has a native currency. It's working folks!”
OhNoCrypto
via https://www.ohnocrypto.com
Nawaz Ahmed, Khareem Sudlow
