I wondered for a while whether it was a complicated ponzi. Though if one dives into the dynamics of the system, they'll find it doesn't meet the criteria.
I still don't fully understand the details and am curious to really grasp it all.
however one major thing to consider:
- didn't invest any money.
- I spent a month writing every day all day
- I was compensated directly proportional to the value voters found in my writing.
that side of the venture is unquestionably NOT a ponzi, and is a piece that is missing from most of the ponzi arguments.
also interesting is the foundational premise - I can't recall how it was worded at the moment - of how the rewards system is setup to incentivize participation on the platform, whether content creation or curation, NOT create ROI for sitting on the sidelines...
I am curious with how Steemit ultimately make money, beyond getting more and more investment to buy steem.
Will a marketplace garner that much revenue? Adverts? Or maybe once Steemit get influential enough, large entities (corporate or commerical) will muscle in and hoard in loads of SP so that can sway the opinions of the collective.
Until there is real value generated AND sold then what is it?
depends on how big the marketplace is grown or what time of advertising model. there's been many a startup in the tech space that raised billions in value before having a clear value proposition - and Steemit DOES have some significant strengths and potential over them.
MANY potential applications could be built on the blockchain. 'tis up to the creativity of the community as to what will be built.
so there will come a point, yes, where that potential needs to be actualized and more streams of revenue generated...
totally agree :) congrats for your work here on Steem!