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Helium isn't really a cryptocurrency by most definitions: it relies on hardware blessed by a central authority doing the 'mining': there's no way to participate

Helium isn't really a cryptocurrency by most definitions: it relies on hardware blessed by a central authority doing the 'mining': there's no way to participate in the consensus of the network without getting the permission of this authority. Secondarily the incentives are pure speculation: miners make money by minting tokens, they do not make any significant amount of money from users of the network (given fees are fixed and the token is pegged to the dollar there is little reason this should change even if demand on the network increases substantially). Arguably this is a 'crypto incentive model' (as in most crypto purchases are incentivised by speculation, not utility), but it does not bode well for the long term life of the network. If it does manage to stay around it will be because speculators essentially paid for the installation costs with no return, which represents savvy or lucky positioning by those who set it up but no intrinsic value to the 'cryptocurrency' part itself.

delabay 5y ago
Nitpick: validation is the consensus process and resembles proof of stake, you don't need to buy any mining hardware to do this. Proof of coverage rewards require the approved hardware. You can make your own packet forwarder and get paid for data transmission, but not proof of coverage. Pure DIY with no central body blessing. There are around 70 different manufacturers in some stage of blessing. Its really not a meaningful hurdle. The approval process is there to insure manufacturers incorporate adequate security protection of chain access keys. Network buildout is called a chicken and egg problem for a reason. Speculation is just another tool and is used to phenomenal effect by Helium. The proof is in the pudding because a majority of Americans and Europeans have coverage now, where once was nothing.

delabay 5y ago

Nitpick: validation is the consensus process and resembles proof of stake, you don't need to buy any mining hardware to do this. Proof of coverage rewards require the approved hardware. You can make your own packet forwarder and get paid for data transmission, but not proof of coverage. Pure DIY with no central body blessing. There are around 70 different manufacturers in some stage of blessing. Its really not a meaningful hurdle. The approval process is there to insure manufacturers incorporate adequate security protection of chain access keys. Network buildout is called a chicken and egg problem for a reason. Speculation is just another tool and is used to phenomenal effect by Helium. The proof is in the pudding because a majority of Americans and Europeans have coverage now, where once was nothing.