It'll be interesting to see how this decision influences other businesses who were interested in SMTs.
If you create an SMT... can you sell that token through an Exchange, or would it only be available through Steem? VICE clearly want their own currency, so maybe SMTs don't really fulfill everything they need.... even with the automatic audience and infrastructure that would come along with the SMT technology.
Vice became STEEM...they forked the blockchain so whatever is designed in the STEEM blockchain is also in Vice.
SMT created tokens can either go through the exchange on here and they can be traded on open exchanges. Obviously to be on an open exchange requires doing an ICO.