Mark Zuckerberg is a greedy son of a bitch. That shouldn't come as a surprise to most folks. But what is surprising is that major multinational institutions feel the exact same way. According to a recent article published by Bloomberg Businessweek, "CNN Has Had Enough."
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With the advent of YouTube amassing unprecedented viewership, Facebook naturally wanted a piece of the pie. Its primary angle-of-attack was the news content sector, through which Zuckerberg introduced applications such as live video hosting. The idea here was to create a news hub delivering 24/7 streaming content to Facebook's nearly 2 billion-strong users.
Initially, media giants like CNN were game. Mainstream television viewership were being gutted at every corner, so the transition to Facebook made a lot of sense. Gradually, however, the benefit-spectrum skewed favorably towards Facebook, and not so much to CNN.
The content was hosted on the social media network, so CNN and company did not receive much increased residual subscribers. Furthermore, the contracts became more onerous on the media companies' resources, while becoming more tangibly lucrative for Zuckerberg. According to Andrew Morse, general manager of CNN's digital operations, "Facebook is about Facebook."
Presently, media corporations are putting up with the skewed dealings because they feel they have no other options. Is this then the golden opportunity for blockchain-powered social media upstart Steemit?
Ironically Limitless Potential
On surface level, the ironic arrangement makes plenty of sense. Steemit is a direct competitor to all social media networks -- and not just Facebook -- by turning the reward structure upside down. Rather than practically limited revenue opportunities to the already rich and famous, the Steemit architecture theoretically allows anyone, including newbies, to start making serious money via their steem cryptocurrency.
This is made possible via the blockchain, where the supply and demand dynamics are tethered towards content creation, rather than "mining algorithms." I personally use the example that Steemit "runs on talent." Of course, the mainstream media corporations, with their army of credentialed journalists and loyal viewers, would make a killing if they joined the Steemit network.
If the mainstream were to join Steemit, it would represent a dramatic change of tone from the usual bashing of cryptocurrency assets like bitcoin. However, I would assume all would be forgiven based on the old saying: the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
But is discontent with Facebook enough to drive Steemit and the steem cryptocurrency?
Major Challenges with the Steemit Architecture
The problem with Steemit, as Eric Grisholm so brilliantly explained in Crush The Street, is that the social media network is a "centralized system backing a decentralized cryptocurrency." Specifically, Grisholm refers to the steem reward structure.
Grisholm writes, "It’s extremely difficult to tell for certain whether or not Steemit is manipulated, but from the outside, it does not look like it. That said, the issue here is the unfairness due to having a centralized system for paying out Steem – even if it isn’t manipulated in any way, those that are 'lucky' enough to get a vote from a major holder are going to make a lot of money, while those that make posts that everyone else loves end up with nothing. For a site that claims it wants to pay out to those that create the best content, this just doesn’t make a lot of sense. Putting everyone on the same level would be a great solution to this problem."
Indeed, the problem is even worse than Grisholm describes. My content has been flagged as "inappropriate" for a whole host of arbitrary reasons, including, but not limited to, differences in political opinions, advocacy of Constitutional rights, and ethnocentric rivalries. Lack of censorship is one thing, but when you invite all members to penalize others for any or no reason whatsoever, that is a very disconcerting system.
Steemit Can Choose to Win, and Win Big!
Recently, Steemit incorporated a hard-fork that resulted in increased reward-share allocation for newcomers. That's a wonderful start, but only a start. To fully advantage the weaknesses in Facebook, Steemit must:
• Centralize punitive measures -- I've noticed a substantial increase in "Robin Hood"-esque crusades against real and perceived infractions. However, Steemit is an international community, and laws (and customs) vary from country to country. In my opinion, it's far better to have a central Steemit authority distribute punishments, lest the network devolve into vigilantism.
• Mandate copyright and plagiarism protections -- This is the big one. There's no way any mainstream multimedia company will eschew Facebook in favor of Steemit if copyright and plagiarism run rampant. The earning of the steem cryptocurrency further complicates these legal matters because Steemit is de facto a commercial operation.
• Content reward evaluation -- I second Grisholm's advice wholeheartedly. Steemit values "reputation" way too much. I find greater value in a well-researched editorial submitted by a low-scoring Steemit user than a post about a farting cat from a network whale.
Ultimately, the potential for Steemit to upend Facebook exists. But potential is not performance, and that still remains an open question.
I am with you! Upvoted! :)
Thank you so much! :)
Upvoted and followed! Look forward to reading more of your content!
Wow, thank you so much! I'll be sure to deliver more content like this! :)
I Hope Steemit Stay Pure For The Regular People And Don't Sell Out !
Yes, and that's exactly my sentiment...people of course will buy and sell like any other public asset; naturally, that's what they're supposed to do. But I genuinely hope that most Steemians understand and embrace the cash flow opportunity rather than the one-time jackpot.
Down with "HateBook" and Suckerberg!
Suckerberg...LOL! I don't know why I didn't think about this before...it's hilarious! :)
Hi! I am a robot. I just upvoted you! I found similar content that readers might be interested in:
https://crushthestreet.com/articles/breaking-news/facebooks-greed-opens-tricky-opportunity-steemit
Awesome, thank you! :)
Greeat work brother, yeah we all need to band together There is a lot we could do to add social functions to Steemit!
For Best Results: Re Steem,Follow,Upvote and Comment!
Tijo-
Absolutely! Thank you so much for the kind words, and yes, I agree...we can definitely choose what kind of network Steemit will eventually become!
We are having a round table in Panama in a few days to chat about some of these topics!
Sounds great...can't wait to hear about it afterwards! :)
Steemit is already winning lol just wait for it to collect all the rewards
That's true from the profitability aspect but what I would like to see is cash flow rather than just a one-time payoff. Steemit has the opportunity to advance but it must make wise decisions.
This Talent you have Josh, is very Rare...
You are quick on your feet, sharp as a tack, and eloquently "flick of the tongue" with your written words that you type!
I would understand any form of jealously, since I am guilty.
Just being Very Frank
P.S. You have Superior Following and WE will let you know how WE feel...
P.S.S. This post and the research @crushthestreet has done is QUALITY and has the support of the Steemit Community.
P.S.S.S. Keep STEEM N ON, Frank
Again, thank you for your kind words. It's funny that you mention "quick on your feet" because I genuinely don't feel that way at all, and it's an area where I believe I need most improvement.
I guess sometimes we are our own worst critic! :)
Yes!! Upvote all the way!
Sweet! I appreciate it very much, thank you! :)
Agreed ... upvoted and followed
That's very kind of you , thank you so much! :)
I upvoted before reading more than the caption. Just saying.
Well, I appreciate it all the same! :)
And so the truth comes out. How fascinating.
That Zuckerberg is an ass? I think it's been known for quite some time!
He seems like one of those self proclaimed "elites".
Yup, he's your typical self-entitled ass...but just so you know, there's plenty of people like that in Steemit and the cryptocurrencies; unfortunately, it's not just limited to mainstream social media.
I just resteemed this.
Thank you so much! :)
when i find steemit i divorced with facebook, becaus they are a thieves.
Learing a lot reading you. Thank you.
The question that arises is: shouldn´t we be afraid of talking about this strange thing flagging, since the flaggers can get us? I´ve heard of really new and small users that have been victim of flagging, losing what they got from their posts because o a single big downvote by the end of the week.
Sounds really strange to me. Sounds really opposed to the philosophy. There must be some other explanation for the existence of this, it must be me who does not get it.
No, you are absolutely right to have concerns, especially about vocalizing this flagging issue. And you are also 100% correct that flagging is "really opposed to the philosophy," as you state. The explanation about why this exists is that Steemit is 100% decentralized (in theory) and therefore, operates by no "moral standard."
But in practice, Steemit is 100% centralized. Those who have power, money, and reputation (as defined by the Steemit architecture) have full de-facto power over "lesser" users. But wait a minute! That sounds like a microcosm of social elitism!
And you know what? It is! This is the truly scary potential of Steemit. Indeed, we have the power to make it great, or we have the power to completely destroy ourselves. With the track record of humanity, it's a sobering thought...
You have raised some pertinent questions. Upvoted and followed.
Myspace...HAHA! What a joke that turned out to be! :)