4 ms·

I presume the point was why do FB / WA need to use the blockchain?

bsaul 8y ago
because you still want the currency to have value if facebook closes one day, or stop supporting the idea. Facebook would endorse the currency, but the currency ecosystem would have a life of its own. At least that’s my guess..
- smileysteve 8y ago
  If bitcoin and eth don't have a stable value in 2018, how does WhatsAppCoin sans Facebook guarantee have to stay stable?
  - ralusek 8y ago
    I would imagine because actual commerce is built around it, rather than its valuation being mostly derived from speculative investment as a value hold.
- solarkraft 8y ago
  Why would Facebook have any interest in this? Public trust? Is the public that smart?
  - bsaul 8y ago
    my guess is if facebook is working on its own blockchain currency, the algorithm describing the currency would be a bit different from bitcoin or ethereum. Contrary to what you read sometimes, those cryptocurrencies have properties that are not desirable for a real world currency ( aka inflationary and very poor number of transaction per seconds capacity).
- UncleEntity 8y ago
  ...or it could be they want to literally print money and have people use it in everyday commerce so they become a de facto Central Bank. If it were merely an account one used to pay for things then they just get to take a small percentage in transaction fees but with a blockchain they can create a bunch of FaceCoins, sell them on the open market and if things go south with their cryptocurrency laugh all the way to the bank counting their billions.
- geofft 8y ago
  Is anyone actually more skeptical in the long-term future of Facebook than of any altcoin? (Remember that in order to prevent double-spend attacks, you need to ensure that nobody—and no potential mining pool—is sitting on more computing power than your network has. That's feasible for a single proof-of-work currency; it's technically impossble with even two unless one outcompetes and kills the other, and certainly practically impossible for a new one at this point. And if you're not using proof-of-work, what stability does the coin have once the corporate backer is gone?)

because you still want the currency to have value if facebook closes one day, or stop supporting the idea. Facebook would endorse the currency, but the currency ecosystem would have a life of its own. At least that’s my guess..

smileysteve 8y ago
If bitcoin and eth don't have a stable value in 2018, how does WhatsAppCoin sans Facebook guarantee have to stay stable?
- ralusek 8y ago
  I would imagine because actual commerce is built around it, rather than its valuation being mostly derived from speculative investment as a value hold.
solarkraft 8y ago
Why would Facebook have any interest in this? Public trust? Is the public that smart?
- bsaul 8y ago
  my guess is if facebook is working on its own blockchain currency, the algorithm describing the currency would be a bit different from bitcoin or ethereum. Contrary to what you read sometimes, those cryptocurrencies have properties that are not desirable for a real world currency ( aka inflationary and very poor number of transaction per seconds capacity).
UncleEntity 8y ago
...or it could be they want to literally print money and have people use it in everyday commerce so they become a de facto Central Bank. If it were merely an account one used to pay for things then they just get to take a small percentage in transaction fees but with a blockchain they can create a bunch of FaceCoins, sell them on the open market and if things go south with their cryptocurrency laugh all the way to the bank counting their billions.
geofft 8y ago
Is anyone actually more skeptical in the long-term future of Facebook than of any altcoin? (Remember that in order to prevent double-spend attacks, you need to ensure that nobody—and no potential mining pool—is sitting on more computing power than your network has. That's feasible for a single proof-of-work currency; it's technically impossble with even two unless one outcompetes and kills the other, and certainly practically impossible for a new one at this point. And if you're not using proof-of-work, what stability does the coin have once the corporate backer is gone?)