Here is a detailed summary article on the key topics discussed in the episode:
Bid Bots and the Trending Page on Steem
In this episode, TheyCallMeDan shared his thoughts on the ongoing debate around bid bots and their use on the Steem blockchain. He began by explaining that he was inspired to share his perspective after seeing two trending posts have their payouts declined.
The Value of the Trending Page
Dan believes the trending page on Steem is a valuable and limited resource that should be earned organically through quality content that the community upvotes. However, he acknowledges that promotion and advertising on the trending page also has value, and should not be free. He draws a comparison to Google AdWords, noting that if that platform was free, it would be overrun with low-quality content.
Declining Payouts as a "Burn"
Dan sees the practice of bid bot users declining their payout rewards as a form of "burning" those tokens, as the funds go back into the overall Steem reward pool rather than being recouped by the bid bot owner. He views this as beneficial for the Steem ecosystem, as it creates buy pressure on the Steem token.
Promoting on Trending
Dan is in favor of allowing promotion on the Steem trending page, but believes it should come at a cost. He suggests ideas like forcing a promoted post into the trending tab periodically, or allowing bid bot users to "burn" a portion of their rewards as a way to pay for the promotion.
Balancing Organic and Promoted Content
Dan believes the trending page should maintain a balance between organic, community-driven content and promoted/paid content. He argues that the free market will naturally regulate this, as too much promotional content will diminish the value of the trending page. He is confident that quality content creators will continue to thrive on the trending page, even with the introduction of paid promotion.
Conclusion
Overall, Dan takes a pragmatic view on bid bots and promotion on Steem. He sees value in allowing paid promotion, as long as it comes with a cost that benefits the Steem ecosystem, such as burning Steem tokens. He is optimistic that the Steem community can find the right balance between organic and promoted content on the trending page.
Notice: This is an AI-generated summary based on a transcript of the video. The summarization of the videos in this channel was requested/approved by the channel owner.